How to train your dragon
by Skylight369
Summary: The story of How to train your dragon but with a twist!
1. We have dragons

**Chapter 1: We have dragons**

**A/N: This is my first time writing fanfiction. Hope you guys like it. Please read and review.**

**Disclaimer: I do not own How to train your dragon.**

**_This is Berk. It's twelve days north of Hopeless, and a few degrees south of Freezing to Death._****_It's located solidly on the Meridian of Misery_**

Somewhere in the archipelago, a village can be seen surrounded by water. All seems peaceful for now...

**_My village. In a word: sturdy. And it's been here for seven generations, but, every single building is new. We have fishing, hunting, and a charming view of the sunsets. The only problems are the pests._**

All of a sudden, on a farm, one of the sheep is taken from above! This alerted the nearby Berkians.

**_You see, most places have mice or mosquitoes. We have..._**

In one of the houses, a fifteen year old boy opens his door only to shut it immediately, narrowly avoiding getting blasted by fire.

"Dragons" he whispered then turned to a girl who was the same age as him.

"It's that time already?" The girl asked him.

"Yep. Let's go!" With that, they both rushed outside, knowing exactly where to go.

**_Most people would leave. Not us. We're Vikings. We have stubbornness issues._**

The once peaceful atmosphere of Berk has suddenly changed into a complete warzone. Every Viking out there was armed with axes, swords, maces and hammers fighting off dragons to protect their village.

The two teens ran into the battlefield, one more excited than the other, being careful to dodge the oncoming villagers.

**_My name's Hiccup and this is my twin sister Hicca. Great names, I know. But, they're not the worst. Parents believe a hideous name will frighten off gnomes and trolls. Like our charming Viking demeanour wouldn't do that._**

Suddenly in the chaos, Hiccup stumbles, falling over backwards and a male Viking lands on top of him.

"ARGGGHHHHH!" The adult Viking roared before cheerfully greeting" Mornin'!" He then left on his path and as Hiccup got up with the help of his sister, they continued on their path.

As they ran they passed by many villagers who kept shouting at them to get inside. These villagers were not saying this out of concern for the twins but rather out of concerns for themselves. Hiccup and Hicca were well-known in their village but in a bad way. These two were outcast because their small size and their ability to inadvertently cause destruction most of the time. But for now the twins ignored the villagers and continued running until a large man grabbed them, stopping them from running into a line of fire from one of the dragons.

"Hiccup?! Hicca?! What are they doing out aga-?! What are you two doing out?! Get inside!" He shouted shoving them off.

**_That's Stoick the Vast. Chief of the tribe. They say that when he was a baby, he popped a dragon's head clean off of its shoulders. Do Hicca and I believe it? Yes, we do_****.**

Stoick then turned to a nearby soldier and asked "What have we got?"

"Gronckles, Nadders, Zipplebacks. Oh, and Hoark saw a Monstrous Nightmare." The soldier replied.

"Any Night Furies?" Stoick asked.

"No." The soldier replied.

This news brought only a bit of relief to the chief. "Good." was all he said.

Back to the twins, who just arrived at the forge where they were greeted by the one-legged, one armed blacksmith.

"Ah! Nice of both of you to join the party! I thought you have both been carried off!" he greeted them teasingly.

"Come on! You can't get rid of us that easily." Hicca replied as she and her brother threw of their vests and grabbed their aprons.

"Hicca's right. We're waaaay too muscular for their taste. They wouldn't know what to do with all...this." Hiccup added, flexing his arms.

"Well, they need toothpicks, don't they?" the blacksmith joked.

**_The meat-head with attitude and interchangeable hands is Gobber. Hicca and I have been his apprentice ever since we were little. Well... littler._**

Immediately after Hiccup opened the window to the forge weapons were thrown into his arms as he struggled to get them to the workbench, while his sister got a fire going and they started working on the weapons.

Meanwhile outside the battlefield, the dragons were persistent in catching their prey and the Vikings fearlessly fought back while some carried the sheeps out of the dragons reaches.

"We move to the moor defences! We'll counter-attack with the catapults!" Stoick commanded just as more dragons flew by burning the every house in sight

**_See? Old village, lots and lots of new houses._**

Through the window of the forge Hiccup and Hicca could see the villages' fire brigade appearing on the scene. The fire brigade consisted of six teens, all the same age as the twins.

**_Oh, and that's Fishlegs_****_, Snotlout_****_, Raeda, the Thorston twins, Ruffnut_****_ and Tuffnut_****_, and... Astrid_****_._**

Both Hicca and Hiccup looked at Astrid Hofferson with different emotions. Hicca looked upset at seeing her. Astrid is one of Berks best young warriors and she use to be friends with Hiccup and Hicca, she and Hicca were even like sisters. However that changed when they were ten years old and Astrid gave Hicca and her brother the cold shoulder and completely ditched them to hang out with the other teens.

Hiccup, on the other hand looked at Astrid with a reluctant admiration. He had crush on Astrid for a long time. Hicca, who was the only one who knew about this, never missed the opportunity to tease him and was excited at the thought of having Astrid as a sister-in-law. However, when Astrid abandoned them, both Hicca and Hiccup were hurt by this. Although Hiccup claims to have gotten over his crush on Astrid, he cannot help feeling nervous around her or stare at her from afar and he hated himself for this. And right now he cannot help but feel envious of the six teens that were out there.

**_Oh, their job is so much cooler._**

As he tried to get out and join them, Gobber suddenly came up behind him using his hook to grab the boy by his tunic and lifted him away from the door.

"Oh, come on. Let me out, please? I need to make my mark!" Hiccup begged. Hicca, however, stayed silent. It is true that she wants to prove herself to the village and always designs, creates and uses different inventions to capture dragons; she does not share the same amount of enthusiasm in dragon slaying that her brother does. Truth is she did not like violence at all. She is more interested in becoming a healer and when she's not with her brother she's with Gothi, the village elder, learning about medicine.

"Oh, you and your sister have made _plenty_ of marks. All in the wrong places." Gobber replied, knowing from experience exactly what will happen if those two were outside during a dragon raid.

"Please, two minutes. I'll kill a dragon. My life will get infinitely better. I might even get a date." Hiccup begged.

"Hiccup, for dating, the best choice for a date would be Raeda and as far as I know neither of you see each other in a romantic way." Hicca told him.

Raeda Henderson is the only teen that Hiccup and Hicca could call their friend. After Astrid ditched them, Raeda became Hiccas' new best friend. Unlike, other Vikings who prefer to fight with axes, hammers and swords, Raeda preferred to use a simple bow and arrow. People would have mocked her for her weapon of choice, if she hadn't given them a demonstration of her spot on aim and her clever use of the arrows. Her friendship with the Haddock twins began when she to the forge one day when they were working. While waiting for her arrows to be made, she casually struck up a conversation with the twins which ended in the three of them talking for hours! It turns out that they have so many things in common. While Hicca and Hiccup were struggling to prove themselves to the village, Raeda was struggling to prove herself to her parents, Helga and Thaddeus Henderson. For generations her family has been known to be one of the best warriors of Berk and her parents want her to continue their legacy and they have very high standards. This troubles Raeda because unlike most of the Vikings on Berk, she doesn't like to fight at all. She may seem like a tough girl but that is just a wall she put up for herself. In fact, she more of a nature loving girl and if she had a choice, she would spend most of her time in the forest than train to fight. Like Hicca, she knows exactly who she is and who she wants to be. Raeda wanted to be an artist. Her artwork is as impressive as her archery and she wants to be a blacksmith to learn crafting. She confided in the twins that she secretly envied them for being able to work in the forge. However, her parents felt that art is just a hobby and were unnecessary in Berk Along with Hiccup and Gobber; Raeda also knows about Hiccas' passion to become a healer and fully supports her. With Hiccup and Hicca, she always felt at ease discussing her problems to them because they always understand what she's going through. With them, she could just be herself and not a strong and fearless warrior. Since then, she has been a close friend of theirs' ready to back them up when they need it.

"Lass has a point. Besides you can't lift a hammer, you can't swing an axe; you can't even throw one of these!" For emphasis, Gobber lifted one of the bolas which was immediately snatched by one of the soldiers outside who then threw it to an oncoming dragon.

"Okay, fine, but this will throw it for me." Hiccup replied gesturing to the newest invention he and his sister made.

"We call it 'The Mangler. It's designed to throw bolas at a faster speed and a higher altitude than an average Viking can,'" Hicca explained. However, as soon as Hiccup touched the device, it suddenly shot a bola which hit one of the warriors standing outside!

"See, now this right here is what I'm talking about!" Gobber told the two.

"We haven't really tested it out properly." Hicca said meekly.

"Yeah. There a few mild calibration issues-"Hiccup started to explain but was then cut off by Gobber.

"Hiccup. If you and your sister ever want to get out there to fight dragons, you both need to stop all... this." Gobber said gesturing to them.

"But, you just pointed to _all_ of us!" Hiccup retorted

"Yes! That's it! Stop being, all of you!" Gobber exclaimed.

Now understanding what Gobber meant, Hiccup tried another approach "You sir, are playing a dangerous game. Keeping this much, raw... Viking-ness... contained?! THERE WILL BE CONSEQUENCES!" he warned.

Gobber, seeing right through this facade, was indifferent. "I'll take my chances. Sword. Sharpen. Now. And you. Go check on that guy your brother just knocked out with this device." He ordered both of them.

As Hiccup took the sword, Hicca rushed outside to check on the guy, hoping there wasn't any brain damage. However, as soon as she reached him, he was starting to recover and shoved her off when she tried to help him up. With a battle cry, he ran to rejoin his comrades. Sighing, Hicca headed back into the forge to work on the other weapons.

**_One day, I'll get out there. Although Hicca doesn't like it but killing a dragon is everything around here. A Nadder head is sure to get me at least noticed. Gronckles are tough. Taking down one of those would definitely get me a girlfriend. A Zippleback? Exotic. Two heads, twice the status. And then, there's the Monstrous Nightmare. Only the best Vikings go after those. They have this nasty habit of setting themselves on fire._** **_But the ultimate prize is the dragon no one has ever seen. We call it the—_**

"NIGHT FURY!" "GET DOWN!" Some of the villagers yelled just before everyone immediately ducked down. Then out of nowhere one catapults exploded and it was the one that contained Stoick the Vast and a few other warriors! Fortunately they managed to jump out of there, narrowly missing a fiery death.

Assessing the situation in front of him, Gobber then turn to his two young apprentices "Man the fort you two, they need me out there!" He instructed them as he switched his prosthetic hand from a hammer to an axe. "Stay. Put. There. Both of you. You two know what I mean."

"You mean don't run off adding anymore destruction and mayhem than there already is." Hicca stated.

"Exactly." With that he gave battle roar and ran outside leaving the twins in the forge.

Hicca turned to her brother, knowing exactly what he was going to do "You're going to go out there with the Mangler, aren't you?" She asked, though it was more of a statement than a question.

"Yep" Hiccup nodded. "You don't have to come with me this time. You can stay here if you want. Dad would be happy to know that at least one of his kids was listening to orders." He told her, knowing well that she wants to be a healer rather than a dragon slayer.

Hicca, however, shook her head "I helped you build this thing. It is only fair that I share the responsibility with you if anything goes wrong with this device. Besides it's our motto 'Where one goes, the other follows'" She reminded him.

Remembering their motto, he smiled at her and grabbed the Mangler "Okay. Let's go! But we better hurry before someone catches us!" Both of them shot out of the forge into the intense battle, once again earning shouts from the villagers.

"Hiccup! Hicca! Where are you two going?!"

"Come back here!"

"Yeah, we know! Be right back!" Hiccup shouted

"We just have to do one quick thing!" Hicca added as they continued running.

Meanwhile, unaware that Hiccup and Hicca left their post at the forge, Stoick and his men struggled to capture a group of Deadly Nadders, who refused to go down without a fight.

"Mind yourselves! The devils still have some juice in them!" The Chief warned his men.

Elsewhere stopping at the edge of the island, Hiccup started setting up the Mangler while Hicca looked for a target.

"There! I see a dragon!" She exclaimed pointed to the sky where an almost invisible black blur rapidly passed by.

Hiccup, looking at the direction his sister was pointing at, immediately fired a bola. A loud cry is heard from above as a shadow is seen plummeting down into a forest.

For a few seconds, both twins just stood there completely shocked until Hiccup found his voice.

"Oh, I hit it! YES! I HIT IT!" Hiccup exclaimed with triumph.

Hicca, who was still registering what happened, let out a breath she didn't know she was holding "Good job bro. It's about time." She finally said however there was a small part of her that felt uneasy about the whole thing and she didn't know why.

"Did anybody see that?" Hiccup asked turning around only to be met by a Monstrous Nightmare who crushed the Mangler. "Except for you." This caused Hicca to turn around and realize that a dragon is there and he did not look happy with them shooting his friend down.

Back in the village two screams got Stoicks attention as he saw Hicca and Hiccup getting chased by a Monstrous Nightmare. However instead of feeling concern for those two, he was rather annoyed as he got up to help them.

Hiccup and Hicca runs behind a torch pole and hid behind it, narrowly avoiding the flames as it came around the corners. But before the dragon could come any closer to either of the twins, Stoick suddenly appears punching the beast away from the two teens. The dragon then tries to retaliate in anger, but coughs up magma instead.

"You're all out." The Viking chief firmly stated. With no fire power left the Monstrous Nightmare surrendered the fight and flew off with the other dragons. Stoick then turned to the twins who were still behind the torch pole until it fell adding more flames to the already burnt out village.

**_Oh and there's one more thing you need to know..._**

Knowing what is going to come next, the twins slowly turned to the face chief with their heads down and spoke in unison "Sorry Dad."


	2. The Search

**A/N: Off to a good start :)**

**Disclaimer: I do not own How to train your dragon**

**Chapter 2: The Search**

That's right. The two scrawny, awkward teens are the son and daughter of the tribe leader, Stoick the Vast, and as Hiccup is the older twin by a minute, he is next in line to become the chief. This has caused doubt and worry in many villagers for obvious reasons.

"Ok. We know we messed up, but we did hit a Night Fury." Hiccup told his Dad.

Angrily, the chief lifted one twin on each hand by their tunics and took them towards their house.

"This time we're not making it up this time! We used the Mangler to launch a bola at the Night Fury and we got him!" Hicca tried to tell him as she and her brother were being carried off.

"It's not like the last few times, Dad! I mean, we really did hit it! You guys were busy and we had a very clear shot. It went down, just off Raven Point. Let's get a search party out there, before it—"Hiccup added before he was cut off.

_"__STOP!_ Just... stop. Every time you two step outside, disaster follows. Can you two not see that I have bigger problems? Winter's almost here and I have an _entire_ village to feed!" Stoick yelled.

"Between the three of us, the village could do with a little _less_ feeding, don't ya think?" Hiccup whispered. "I think so." Hicca agreed nodding her head, causing some of the Vikings who overheard to self-consciously put their hand to their stomachs.

"This isn't a joke, you two! Why can't you guys follow the simplest orders?" Stoick asked annoyed at them.

"We can't stop ourselves. We see a dragon and we have to just... kill it, you know? It's who we are, Dad." Hiccup answered." You two are many things, Hiccup and Hicca. But a dragon killer is not one of them. Get back to the house."

Hicca couldn't help and agree with her Dad. Unlike her brother, she knew who she was what she really wants to be. Unfortunately, in a village like Berk and with her status, those two things were not warmly welcomed.

Stoick then turned to Gobber "Make sure they get there. I have their mess to clean up." With that he left tend to the village as Gobber and the twins made their way back to the Haddock household. On the way they were met with mocks from Snotlout and Tuffnut.

"Quite the performance." Tuffnut jeered.

"I've never seen anyone mess up that badly. That helped!" Snotlout taunted

"Thank you, thank you. We were trying, so..." Hiccup replied sarcastically while Hicca chose to ignore the two boys.

As they were getting close to their house, the two teens tried to convince Gobber they were telling the truth.

"We really did hit one." Hiccup said. "We're telling the truth. The dragon fell somewhere in the forest." Hicca added.

"I'm sure you two did." Gobber said sarcastically. As much as he likes the Haddock Twins, those two have a tendency to exaggerate on certain things. He assumed that this was another one.

"He never listens." "No matter how much we try to tell him." Hiccup and Hicca complained referring to their dad.

"Well, it runs in the family." Gobber informed them.

Hiccup ignored that comment and continued his rant "And when he does, it's always with this... disappointed scowl. Like someone skimped on the meat in his sandwich." He then imitates Stoick. "Excuse me, barmaid! I'm afraid you brought me the wrong offsprings. I ordered two extra large children with beefy arms. Extra guts and glory on the side. These two here, these are two talking fish bones!"

Gobber gave them a sympathetic look, knowing exactly what those two are going through being the children of the chief, and tried to console them." Now, you're thinking about this all wrong. It's not so much what you two look like; it's what's inside that he can't stand."

However that comment made them feel worse "Thank you for summing that up." Hiccup said sarcastically. "That makes us feel so much better." Hicca added also with sarcasm.

Gobber sighed, knowing he was not that good at counselling "Look, the point is, stop trying so hard to be something you're not." He advised them

"I just want to be one of you guys." Hiccup said dejectedly, only speaking for himself because he knows very well that it was not what Hicca wants. He then went inside leaving his sister with his mentor. Gobber, who noticed that Hiccup left his sister out of that statement turned to the girl and asked her "That is not what you want is it." "No." She replied quietly.

"Then why don't you let your father know Hicca? Hiccup, Raeda and I have said numerous times; you're only fifteen and your knowledge of medicine is at a very high level. You would be one of the best healers if you were given the chance." "I know that Gobber but I need to prove to village that I'm not incompetent. I mean who would want one of the screw-ups to treat their wounds? No one would come to me, even if they are bleeding to death. And the only way I could prove myself to them is by killing a dragon." She explained to her mentor.

Gobber, knowing this is true, gave her a pat on her shoulder "Take it easy today, both of you. I am going you two a day off from the forge." He then left towards the Great Hall. Hicca went inside and found her brother leaving the house through the back door. "You're going to find that Night Fury, aren't you." She asked although she very well what the answer was.

Hiccup turned to her and answered her question "Yes. And I think this time you should stay. I got you in enough trouble already." He said guiltily knowing well that out of the two, only he had the desire to kill a dragon. It was actually Hiccup who came up with the idea of making inventions to trap dragons. He knew that if he didn't go outside trying to capture dragons, then his sister would actually stay in the forge, following orders.

Hicca, however, shook her head. "You're forgetting the other motto bro 'Whatever happens to one will happen to the other'. I'm with you through and through no matter how many lectures we get from the village and our Dad combined." She firmly told him looking him in the eyes.

Hiccup smiled at her. If there was one person he would trust with his life it would be his sister. She always understood so well it was like she could read his mine and vice versa and she always stood by him regardless of the amount of trouble she ends up in. He could not ask for better sister than her.

"Come on. Let's go." And the two went off, hoping to come back with a change in their reputations.

While the Haddock twins went to their own mission in the woods, in the Great Hall a meeting was held to discuss the Dragons' Nest with Stoick, as chief, leading this meeting. "Either we finish them, or they'll finish us! It's the only way we'll be rid of them! If we find the nest and destroy it, the dragons will leave. They'll find another home! One more search. Before the ice sets in."

"Those ships never come back." One of the villagers argued. However, this fact did not discourage the chief. "We're Vikings! It's an occupational hazard! Now who's with me?" Seeing as no one is willing to volunteer, Stoick tried a different approach. "Alright. Those who stay will look after Hiccup and Hicca." Immediately every hand shot in the air. No one wanted to have the task of looking after those troublesome twins.

"That's more like it." Stoick said, although a part of him did feel guilty about using his children like that but he dismissed this. 'This is an important mission and we need every warrior we can get' He reminded himself as everyone except for him and Gobber left to prepare for the mission.

"Right, I'll pack my undies." Gobber said finishing his drink.

"No, I need you to stay and train some new recruits." Stoick informed him

"Oh, perfect. And while I'm busy, Hiccup and Hicca can cover the stall. Molten steel, razor sharp blades, lots of time to themselves... what could possibly go wrong?" Gobber said sarcastically with different possibilities running through his head.

That reminded Stoick about his dilemma with his children. He sighed "What am I going to do with them, Gobber?"

"Put them in training with the others." Gobber suggested.

"No, I'm serious."

"So am I."

"They'll be killed before you let the first dragon out of its cage." Stoick stated

"Oh, you don't know that." Gobber argued.

"I do know that, actually."

"No, you don't."

"No, actually, I do."

"No, you don't!"

"Listen." Stoick said feeling frustrated from this argument. "You know what they're like. From the time they could crawl they've been... different. They don't listen; they have the attention span of a sparrow... I take them fishing and they go hunting for... for trolls!"

"Trolls exist! They steal your socks. But only the left ones. What's with that?" the blacksmith wondered. This made Stoick sigh. At least he knew where his kids got that idea from...

"When I was a boy..." He started to say.

"Oh, here we go." Gobber sighed, knowing what was coming.

"My father told me to bang my head against a rock, and I did it. I thought it was crazy, but I didn't question him. And you know what happened?"

"You got a headache." Gobber asked.

"That rock split in two. It taught me what a Viking could do, Gobber. He could- He could crush mountains, level forests, and tame seas! Even as a boy, I knew what I was, what I had to become. Hiccup and Hicca are not like that." He explained.

Gobber was about to tell him that his daughter actually knows who she has to become, but decided not to as he knew that Stoick would only understand if he would listen to her. Instead, he decided to give his friend some advice. "You can't stop them, Stoick. You can only prepare them. Look, I know it seems hopeless. But the truth is you won't always be around to protect them. They're going to get out there again. They're probably out there now."

Little did they know that Gobber was actually right as Hicca and Hiccup were still in the forest looking for the dragon they shot down. They soon became frustrated at their many failed attempts to find it "Great! This is just great. Some people lose their knife or their mug. No. Not us. We manage to lose an _ENTIRE DRAGON?!" _Hiccup ranted to his sister.

"We have the best luck in the world." Hicca said sarcastically.

Suddenly they stopped in front of a tree which was bent, as if something crashed right on top of it. There was also a trail which indicated that the said 'something' was dragged across the ground after crashing into the tree. Following the trail, the twins climbed on a large rock only to immediately duck back down after what they just saw. Slowly they moved back up and stood there in shock. There on the ground, trapped by a bola, was the dragon they have been looking for!

Amazed by their sudden twist of luck, the twins cautiously moved towards the dragon. It looks as though the dragon was dead!

Hiccup was the first to speak "Oh, wow. We did it. Oh, we did it! Do you see this sis? This fixes everything!" Confidently, Hiccup put on of his foot on the dragon."Yes! We have brought down this mighty beast!"

Suddenly, the dragon stirred opening his eyes and letting the twins know that he was still alive. This took Hiccup by surprised as he stumbled backwards. "Be careful Hiccup!" His sister warned.

Hiccup now had a determined look in his eyes as he brought out his dagger "Are you sure you don't want to do this Hicca. This opportunity may never come again." He offered.

Hicca considered this for a second. In Berk, killing a dragon is everything. It is one thing to become the youngest Viking to kill a dragon, but to become youngest Viking to kill the most feared and deadly dragon in the archipelago was a whole new level. They would no longer be known as the outcasts of Berk. Their father would finally look at them with pride and the village would look at them with deep respect. This could even help her with her chances to become a healer. But one look at that dragon Hicca knew she would not be able to kill him, even though dragons were their enemies. This was not who she was and she knew it.

"No. You came up with the design for the Mangler, you launched that bola and you want this more than I do. You kill him." She said

Hiccup, knowing he couldn't convince her to do this and also knowing her status would stay the same, possibly worse, if she didn't kill the dragon, made a suggestion "How about I stab him twice and then we can tell everyone that we both killed him at the same time."

Thinking about that suggestion, Hicca nodded her head "Ok"

Hiccup then prepared himself for the turning point of his life. "I'm going to kill you, dragon. I'm gonna cut out your heart and take it to my father. I'm a Viking. I am a VIKING!" He raised his dagger high into the air. However at the last moment he looked into the dragons' eyes right before they were closed. Hiccup suddenly realized that, like his sister, he was unable to kill this dragon.

"I did this." He muttered making a new decision. He then turned to his sister. "Go hide behind that boulder." He instructed her. She was confused about this and the fact that Hiccup seemed hesitant to kill the dragon "Why." She asked.

"Because I'm about to do something very stupid and I would feel better if you were behind that boulder. Now go!" He ordered. Hicca was about to argue with him but one look in his eyes was enough to tell her not to. So instead, she quietly went behind the rock.

Taking a deep breath, Hiccup started to cut the rope, much to his sisters' shock "Hiccup! What do you think you're doing?!" She asked now fearing for his life and his sanity.

Hiccup ignored her and continued cutting the ropes. As soon as he cut the last rope, the Night Fury sprang at him, pinning him to the ground! The situation was suddenly reversed and Hiccup was now at the mercy of the dragon! "HICCUP!" Hicca yelled as she ran to help him. However, she was stopped when a plasma blast was fired near here feet! Turning to the source, Hicca found another Night Fury with its pupils in slits, daring the human to take another step. This left Hicca at a standstill as she could do nothing now but watch as the other Night Fury kill her brother right in front of her! But that moment never came as the dragon just roared in Hiccups' face and then left, with the other Night Fury following.

Hicca, immediately recovering from her shock went to help her brother up. "Hiccup! Are you okay? Physically, not mentally." She asked as she helped him up, adding the last sentence to avoid a sarcastic response. "Y-Yeah I-I'm alright. I think." He stuttered, still shaken up by what nearly happened. "Come on. Let's head back."

As the two walked back to the village, Hicca decided to ask her brother the question that has been plaguing her mind "Why didn't you kill that dragon Hiccup? Why did you cut him free?"

Hiccup, who now recovered from his shock, turned to her and tried to answer her question "I don't know. I just couldn't." That did not fool Hicca. "No. You do know why. You're just scared to admit it. Come on! It's me you're talking to."

Realizing her sister is right; Hiccup then answered "Let's just say I can see now why you do not want to kill dragons. Can we leave it at that? Please?" He begged her.

Hicca nodded her head understandingly. "As far as the village knows, the Night Fury cut through the bola with his teeth and escaped. Not the\at we need a cover story though. No one believes that we captured a Night Fury in the first place." She stated "Thank you." Hiccup said to her gratefully.

Finally arrived back at the village, no one seemed to notice or care about their disappearance, something they were thankful for at the moment. Reaching their house they slowly and quietly went inside and rushed into their joint bedroom, until they were stopped by their Dad, who was sitting next to the fire "Hiccup? Hicca?" He called out.

The twins looked at each other nervously as they walked down. They knew that after today they have to their father about them killing dragons. Hiccup was the first to speak up "Dad. Uh... We have to talk to you, Dad."

"I also need to speak with both of you."Stoick replied

Taking a deep breath all three of them spoke simultaneously.

"We've decided we don't want to fight dragons/ I think it's time you two learn to fight dragons." They took a pause trying to get what the other said "What?" Father and children asked.

"You go first."Stoick offered

"No, no, _you_ go first." Hiccup said. Hicca nodded in agreement.

"Alright. You two get your wish; Dragon training. Both of you start in the morning." Stoick announced. This caused the twins to panic. After today, there was no way either of them could go through with this training!

Hiccup tried to come up with an excuse "Oh, man, we should've gone first! Uh, 'cause we were thinking, you know, this village has a surplus of dragon-fighting Vikings, but is there enough... bread-making Vikings, or small home repair Vikings-?"

"Or healers-"Hicca tried Stoick, however, was not listening and instead, handed each of them an axe. "You're going to need these."

Hiccup decided to be blunt "We don't want to fight dragons." He said nervously

This caused Stoick to chuckle "Come on. Yes, you do."

"You really don't get what we're saying." "Rephrase. Dad, we _can't_ kill dragons."

"But you _will_ kill dragons."

"No, I'm really very extra sure that I won't." "I know for a fact that I won't"

"It's time, Hiccup and Hicca."

"Can you not hear us?!" "We're trying to tell you-"

"This is serious, you two! When you carry this axe, you carry all of us with you. This means you two walk like us. You talk like us. You think like us. No more of... this." He said with both his hands out in front.

"You just gestured to all of us." Hiccup said exasperatedly. Looks like this is going to be a new trend.

"Deal?" Stoick asked.

"This conversation is feeling very one-sided..." Hiccup tried to argue.

"DEAL?!" Stoick pressed.

Hiccup sighed and reluctantly agreed. "Deal." He muttered.

"Good" satisfied Stoick then turned to his daughter to give one more try in talking to her dad. "Dad this is not something I genuinely want to-"

"Do we have a deal or not?!" her dad asked interrupting her. Realizing that he is not going to listen to her again, Hicca just gave up and nodded her head.

"Good. Train hard both of you. I'll be back. Probably." Stoick said as he left.

"And we'll be here. Maybe." Hiccup muttered. It was clear that the twins were not excited about tomorrow.


	3. Dragon Training (the Gronkle)

**A/N: I'm back! Still getting the hang of the posting new chapters since this is my first time. Please read and review :)**

**Disclaimer: I do not own How to train your dragon**

**Chapter 3:Dragon Training (the Gronkle)**

The next morning, after breakfast Hiccup and Hicca had some time before training so they hung around the forge; both deep in thought about today's training until they heard a familiar voice.

"Hello? Hicc 1? Hicc 2? Are you guys in here?" The voice called out.

"In here Rae." Hicca, aka Hicc 2, replied. Knowing what Raeda is here for; Hiccup went inside a room in the forge that he and Hicca shared to look for something.

"Hey guys! I was wondering if you had my arrows ready." The raven haired girl inquired. As if on cue, Hiccup emerged from the room with a quiver over his left shoulder. "Here you go. One quiver fully stocked with arrows, all sharp to the point." He replied, giving her the quiver.

Raeda smiled at him and then took out one of the arrows to inspect it. "These are perfect, right? Today's the first day of dragon training and every arrow counts." She informed them.

"Don't worry Rae. We scrutinized each and every arrow. They're all perfect." Hicca assured her.

"Speaking of dragon training, guess what? Our dad signed us up for dragon training." Hiccup informed Raeda with little enthusiasm. This new information suddenly caught Raedas' attention away from her arrow.

"What?! Really?! You finally manage to convince your dad? Congratulations!" She said happily but then noticed neither of them, especially Hiccup, was excited by this. "What's wrong Hicc 1? Isn't this what you've been asking for? You should be happy by this."

Hiccup and Hicca nervously looked at each other. Although Raeda has helped them through so much, they found themselves unable to confide their secret to her. They weren't sure how she would react to this, knowing well that the dragons were responsible for the death of many of her relatives and that all of intense training from her parents is to fight against dragons, so they decided to lie.

"I-I guess I'm more nervous t-then excited. I actually didn't t-think that our Dad would agree to this." Hiccup stuttered. Raeda seemed to believe it, because then she turned to Hicca "And you..."

"Honestly, dragon slaying is not who I am anymore than it is who you are." Hicca told her, deciding to give her a half honest answer. Raeda nodded her head in understanding. "I know it is hard for you, having to do something that's the opposite of what you really want to do. But let's face it; in village where dragon raids happen almost every night, it is important that we learn to at least defend ourselves so we don't get burned to crisp". The twins couldn't help but agree with that point.

"Besides you two are fast and light. That gives both of you agility and stealth. You should focus on that more in dragon training and you'll be fine." She advised them.

This made the twins smile a little bit "Thanks Rae." They said in unison

"No problem. Now let's go. Can't be late on the first day of dragon training." And the trio headed off to the arena. On the way there, Raeda suddenly asked "By the way, did you guys ever found that Night Fury you shot down."

The sincerity in her question shocked both Hicca and Hiccup "Wait. Do you mean you believe us when we said that?" Hiccup asked her.

"Of course." She answered honestly. This made Hiccup and Hicca smile again. It was good to know that there was one person in this village who believed them.

"And what makes you think we went looking for them?"

"Isn't it obvious?" Raeda asked knowing those two well enough to predict their antics. "So did you find it?"

Although they felt guilty about it, they decided to stick with Hiccas' cover story.

"No we didn't find him." Hiccup answered

"We did find our bola which was cut up. It looked like the Night Fury, or another dragon, cut through the bola with its teeth and escaped." Hicca added

"That's too bad. That would've instantly made you two legends." Raeda said sympathetically.

"We know." they said. They definitely knew that.

Soon, they reached the academy and Hiccup and Hicca decided to hang back while Raeda joined the other teens, who didn't notice the Haddock twins there.

"Welcome to Dragon Training!" Gobber greeted opening the gates for the new recruits.

Astrid, who was leading the group, had a determined look in eyes "No turning back" she reminded herself.

The teens walked in as they looked around the inside of the arena with awe and thrill.

"I hope I get some serious burns!" Tuffnut said excitedly.

"I'm hoping for some mauling, like on my shoulder or lower back." His twin sister Ruffnut joined in.

"I can do without that. Thank you very much." Raeda grimaced.

"Come on Rae. It's only fun if you get a scar out of it." Astrid said

"No kidding, right? Pain. Love it." "Yeah you know what they say: No pain no gain." Hiccup and Hicca said sarcastically making their presence known to the other teens except Raeda.

"Oh, great. Who let _them_ in?" Tuffnut asked annoyed.

"Stoick did. So if you have a problem with it, go complain to him." Raeda retorted, making Tuffnut quiet.

"Let's get started! The recruit who does best will win the honour of killing his or her first dragon in front of the entire village." Gobber announced.

"Hiccup and Hicca already killed a Night Fury, so does that disqualify them or...?" Snotlout mocked causing the Thorston twins to laugh. He then added "Can I transfer to the class with the _cool_ Vikings?"

"You can't Snotlout. You'll feel out of place in that class." Raeda replied, smirking at his scowl.

Wanting to avoid an argument, Gobber had all of them line up while whispering to Hicca and Hiccup "Don't worry. You're both small and weak. That'll make you two less of a target! They'll see you two as sick or insane and go after the more Viking-like teens instead." Once again Gobbers attempt to console the Haddock twins did little to achieve its goal.

He then continued with the lesson while Fishlegs, a zealous dragon analyzer, enthusiastically gave stats for each dragon.

"Behind these doors are just a few of the many species you will learn to fight! The Deadly Nadder!"

"Speed: eight; Armour: sixteen."

"The Hideous Zippleback!"

"Plus eleven stealth times two."

"The Monstrous Nightmare!"

"Firepower: fifteen."

"The Terrible Terror!"

"Attack: eight; Venom: twelve!"

"CAN YOU STOP THAT?!" Gobber yelled, getting annoyed at Fishlegs. Taking a deep breath he continued his explanation "And... the Gronckle!"

Fishlegs, unable to resist the temptation, whispered to Hiccup and Hicca "Jaw strength: eight." Causing the two to look at him confused.

"Whoa, whoa, wait! Aren't you gonna teach us first?!" Snotlout ask, starting to panic as he notice that the blacksmith/teacher was about to open one of the dragon cages.

Gobber gave a mischievous smirk and simply replied "I believe in learning on the job." With that he opens the cage, unleashing an angry Gronckle at the teens, causing them to scurry out of the raging dragons' path.

"Today is about survival. If you get blasted... you're dead! Quick! What's the first thing you're going to need?"

"A doctor?" Hiccup suggested

"Plus five speed?" Fishlegs tried

However, it was Astrid and Raeda who got the right answer "A shield!" they both yelled at the same time.

"Shields! Go! Your most important piece of equipment is your shield! If you must make a choice between a sword and a shield, take the shield!" Gobber informed them

Everyone made a mad dash for the shields. Astrid, Raeda, Snotlout and Fishlegs got their shields with no problem but Hiccup and Hicca struggled to get a grip on their shields until Gobber helped them and Ruffnut and Tuffnut started arguing over a shield.

While the Haddock twins get along well all the time, the Thorston twins were the exact opposite. They fight every day, verbally and physically, yet like the Haddock twins, they were never seen separated from each other. And right now, during the training, they grabbed the same shield at the same time causing another argument.

"Get your hands off my shield!" Tuffnut shouted.

"There's like a million shields!" Ruffnut retorted

"Take that one; it has a flower on it. Girls like flowers."

Offended by that comment, Ruffnut takes the shield and slams it onto Tuffnut's head.

"Oops, now this one has blood on it."

As they continued arguing, neither of them noticed a certain dragon in front of them until their shield got hit by a lava blast.

"Tuffnut, Ruffnut, you're out!" Gobber announced

"What?" They asked, dazed by the blast.

"Those shields are good for another thing: noise! Make lots of it to throw off a dragon's aim!" Gobber instructed. The remaining recruits followed this advice, causing much confusion to the Gronckle.

"All dragons have a limited number of shots. How many does a Gronckle have?" Gobber asked.

"Five?" Snotlout guessed while running from the dragon

"No, six!" Fishlegs answered confidently

"Correct, six! Last two standing wins!"

Fishlegs got distracted from Gobbers question that he didn't notice the Gronckle until his shield got blasted! "Fishlegs, out." Gobber announced, then noticed that his two apprentices were hiding behind a wooden board "Hiccup, Hicca, get in there!"

Raeda, who did a summersault dive to a good distance behind the Gronckle, quietly set her shield down and got her bow and arrow out. She quickly fired the arrow, only for the Gronckle to knock it away by its tail! Target now locked Raeda; the Gronckle prepared a lava blast! Luckily, Raeda managed to get her shield in front of her to protect herself, but the force of the lava blast on her shield caused her to stumble backwards. "Raeda, you're out." This leaves Snotlout, Hicca, Hiccup and Astrid.

Snotlout, however, had his mind on something else; flirting with Astrid "So, anyway I'm moving into my parents' basement. You should come by sometime to work out. You look like you work out." He said to her just as she cart wheeled away from him just before he got blasted "Snotlout! You're done!" Then there were three.

Astrid then came near Hiccup and Hicca while still focusing on the Gronckle. Hiccup then tried to make a conversation with his former friend "So, I guess it's just you, me and Hicca, huh?" Astrid was not really in the mood for talking so she just replied "Nope. Just you two." Before diving out of the way just before the dragon fired another lava blast, knocking Hiccups and Hiccas shields out of their hands! "One shot left!" Gobber shouted, however Hiccup and Hicca weren't listening to him, instead they chased after their shields which were rolling away from them. This caused them to get cornered by the Gronckle. Hiccup, at the last moment, shoved his sister out of danger, leaving him to take the full blast. Luckily for him, Gobber appeared yanking on the dragons' mouth with his hook, redirecting the lava blast to the wall. He then pulled the angry dragon back to its cage "And that's six! Go back to bed, ya overgrown sausage! You'll get another chance, don't you worry" After locking the cage, he turned to the teens "Remember: a dragon will always - _always_ - go for the kill."

Everyone left the arena, except for Hiccup, Hicca and Raeda. Hiccup and Hicca look at each other and new that the other one was thinking about what Gobber just told them. "Are you okay Hiccup?" Raeda asked concern.

This brought the twins out of their daze "W-what? Oh, yeah. I'm fine. J-just a bit shocked by what nearly happened." He replied with the half-truth.

"That's good. So now that training's over, do you guys want to hang right now? My parents have left for the dragon raid so I'm making my own training schedule a bit lighter." She offered. Hicca and Hiccup, however, had other plans. "S-sorry Rae. We kind of have some other work we need to get done." Hicca said apologetically. "It's okay then. See you guys later." She then left the Arena, while Hicca and Hiccup snuck into the forest, feeling a bit guilty again. Raeda was like another sister to both of them. When Astrid suddenly stopped talking to them, Raeda came along and she always stood by them no matter what. And here they are lying to her and ditching her when she is free, something that doesn't happen often when her parents were home. But they couldn't help it. They had to find those Night Furies again. On the way to the forest, the twins had only one thing in mind 'A dragon will_ always_ go for the kill.'


	4. They Meet Again

**A/N: Here's another update. Please read and review. Criticisms will be taken into consideration**

**Disclaimer: I do not own How to train your dragon**

**Chapter 4: They meet again**

Soon they arrived at a familiar place in the forest.

"So why didn't you?" Hiccup wondered out loud while picking up a piece of the cut up bola.

The two then walked in the direction where the dragons flew off. They soon arrived at a passage of a secluded cove.

"Well, this was stupid." Hiccup said realizing that the two dragons were probably far away from the island by now. Hicca was about to agree when something on the ground caught her eyes.

"Hiccup look!" She said picking up some black scales "Night Fury scales. Black as the sky at midnight." She stated admiring the scales.

"Yeah, hence, the whole 'camouflage at night' part."

Suddenly, they got the shock of their lives as a Night Fury came into view, making both twins fall backwards. However, it did not look like the dragon noticed both of them as it fell to the ground. Slowly and quietly Hiccup and Hicca move towards some nearby rocks and observed the two Night Furies, one male the other female, below them. The male Night Fury kept trying to fly out of the cove only to spiral downwards every time and the female Night Fury just sat there watching with a hopeful look on her face. Hicca then got her notebook and charcoal out of her satchel and started making a drawing of the female Night Fury. "I'll sketch one, you'll sketch the other." She whispered. Hiccup nodded in agreement.

When she finished, she then handed the book to Hiccup to draw the male Night Fury. As he finished his drawing, he noticed that the male Night Fury did not have a left tail fin so he erased it in his sketch.

"Why don't you guys just... fly away?" He wondered. Then Hicca noticed something.

"The female Night Fury has a left tail fin but the male Night Fury doesn't." She pointed out, and then a realization hit her as she suddenly felt guilty. "We did that. His tail fin must have torn when he crashed landed after we shot him down. That's why he can't fly away" This made Hiccup feel guilty as well. "Yeah and the female Night Fury is still here because she doesn't want to leave him behind." He added just before he accidently dropped his charcoal pencil, which fell right in the cove, alerting the two night furies of the two humans' presence!

Hicca silently scolded Hiccup, hitting him on the shoulder before she and her brother turned to look at the Night Furies who were now staring back. For a moment no one said or did anything as both sides stared at each other with more curiosity rather than hostility. Then Hiccup broke the standstill. "Come on. We've pushed our luck enough for one day. Let's go" he said as he got up and then pulled his sister up.

One glance back to the dragons, who were still staring at them with curiosity, the twins made their way back to village just as it started to rain. Completely drenched, they then made their way to the Great Hall for dinner where they joined Gobber and the other teens, who were discussing the training.

"Alright. Where did Astrid go wrong in the ring today?" Gobber asked.

Astrid answered that question herself "I mistimed my summersault dive. It was sloppy. It threw off my reverse tumble."

"Yeah, we noticed." Ruffnut said sarcastically

"No, no, you were great. That was so 'Astrid'." Snotlout said, obviously trying and failing to flirt with Astrid.

"She's right; you have to be tough on yourselves. Where did Hiccup and Hicca go wrong?" Gobber then asked noticing the Haddock twins arriving. This question set off the usual taunts as Hicca and Hiccup had to sit at a nearby table when the others didn't give them room to sit next to him.

"Uh, they showed up?" Ruffnut sneered.

"They didn't get eaten" Tuffnut suggested.

"They're never where they should be." Astrid said annoyed.

Before Gobber could say anything, Hicca, hurt and frustrated by Astrids' comment, spoke up. "Uh, Gobber? Back to where Astrid went wrong, I'd like to add another thing. Astrid left us to fend for ourselves against the Gronckle instead of giving us a warning. Hiccup nearly got killed back there if you didn't intervene. It should be noted that Astrid has a tendency to abandon people whenever she wants to and it makes her completely unreliable." This caused Astrid to glare daggers at her, which she returned, while Hiccup looked at his sister with awe and admiration and Raeda, who got up from her seat to join the Haddock twins, gave her a thumbs-up. The others just stared at Hicca with shock not expecting that at all. Wanting to avoid another potential argument, Gobber then spoke up bringing a book with him. "Uh, thank you Hicca. Like I was saying you need to live and breathe this stuff. The Dragon Manual. Everything we know about every dragon we know of."

As he set a thick book on the table, he was then interrupted by the sound of thunder. Realizing that it was still raining, he then announced before leaving "No attacks tonight. Study up."

This surprised and disappointed the Thorston twins and Snotlout.

"Wait, you mean, _read?_" Tuffnut asked in disbelief

"While we're still alive?" Ruffnut asked in equal disbelief

"Why read words when you can just kill the stuff the words tell you stuff about?" Snotlout asked, clearly not to happy about the idea of studying.

"This is important. You need to know your enemies weaknesses so that you can make a plan based on that. Otherwise you're fighting blindly." Raeda argued.

"Oh! I've read it like, seven times. There's this water dragon that sprays boiling water at your face. And-And there's this other one that buries itself for like a week-" Fishlegs started to explain excitedly before being cut off by Tuffnut.

"Yeah, that sounds great. See, there was a chance I was going to read that..."

"...But, now..." Ruffnut added, bored by this.

"You guys read, I'll go kill stuff." Snotlout boasted before he left with Ruffnut, Tuffnut and Fishlegs in tow, leaving Astrid, Raeda, Hiccup and Hicca.

"So I guess we'll share?" Hiccup started to offer before Astrid dismissed him

"Read it" she simply said.

"Of course you did, Miss 'Perfect-star-pupil." Raeda taunted. Astrid turned around, looking like she wanted to attack the Henderson girl but she decided not to. Hicca and Raeda were the only ones who would dare to speak anything against her to her face. Hicca, because she knows the real Astrid and is not afraid of her and Raeda because, although she's not a fan of fighting, can match up to the tough Hofferson whenever she wants in terms of fighting skills. So Astrid decided to just leave, slamming the door behind her.

Raeda then turned to Hicca and Hiccup "Nice job, standing up to Astrid, Hicca. Hiccup you can definitely learn something from your sister." Hiccup just smiled, proud of his sister for standing up for herself while silently agreeing with what Raeda said.

"Thanks Rae. So I guess the three of us will share?" Hicca asked

"Oh, I've already read it. Actually I was thinking of doing some training right now. Training with this thunderstorm might help me be more alert for tomorrow." Raeda said.

"Be careful out there. And if you're free tomorrow, then maybe the three of us can hang out at the forge or something." Hiccup said, wanting to make up for ditching his only friend. Hicca nodded in agreement with the same thoughts.

"Yeah that sounds good." Raeda agreed and then left.

Afterwards, when everyone else left, Hiccup and Hicca brought lighted candles and then opened the dragon manual to start their study night.

They decided to take turns reading each chapter. Hiccup then started reading "Dragon classifications. Strike Class, Fear Class, Mystery Class. Thunderdrum: This reclusive dragon inhabits sea caves and dark tide pools. When startled, the Thunderdrum produces a concussive sound that can kill a man at close range. Extremely dangerous, kill on sight." He then let Hicca read.

"Timberjack: This gigantic creature has razor sharp wings that can slice through full grown trees. Extremely dangerous, kill on sight."

"Scauldron: Sprays scalding water at its victim. Extremely dangerous."

"Changewing: Even newly hatched dragons can spray acid. Kill on sight. Is there chapter here that doesn't have 'kill on sight' written on it." Hicca wondered while Hiccup continued to read

"Gronckle, Zippleback, the Skrill, Boneknapper, Whispering Death. Burns its victims, buries its victims, chokes its victims-"

"Turns its victims inside-out!?" This made both of them shudder. They made a mental note never to cross path with that dragon! Hiccup then continued.

"Extremely dangerous, extremely dangerous, kill on sight, kill on sight, kill on sight..." Then an almost blank chapter made him stop and stare along with his sister. "Night Fury: Speed, unknown. Size, unknown"

Hicca then took over reading "The unholy offspring of lightning and death itself. Never engage this dragon. Your only chance, hide and pray it does not find you."

This made the two stare at each other in shock, before Hiccup pulled out his journal, turned to the page which had the drawing of the female Night Fury, and set it on top of the Night Fury chapter which had no drawings of its own.

"We're going to be seeing a lot more of those Night Furies aren't we?" Hicca asked, knowing the answer. Hiccup only nodded in reply.


	5. The Nadder Incident

**A/N: Back with another update. Please read and review**

**Disclaimer: I do not own How to train your dragon**

**Chapter 5: The Nadder Incident**

Elsewhere, far away from Berk was a fleet of ships locked in a search for the Dragons' Nest and on the leading ship of the search was Stoick the Vast whose eyes were filled with determination. "I can almost smell them. They're close. Steady." He said in a low voice as the ships started to move inside a fog. "Take us in." He commanded. However a few seconds after they moved in the fog, screams and shouts were heard as the dragons found them!

Meanwhile, the next day back at Berk, Hiccup and Hicca decided to find out what they can about Night Furies, hang out with Raeda for a few hours and then head to the Cove. However, they soon found out that asking Gobber a few questions during training would be easier said than done!

"You know, Hicca and I just happened to notice the book had nothing on Night Furies. Is there another book? Or a sequel? Maybe a little Night Fury pamphlet?" Hiccup asked Gobber who was on a perch above the arena

"Or maybe someone we could talk to-"Hicca tried right before she and her brother got their axes blasted.

"Focus, you two! You're not even trying!" Gobber shouted.

For today's training the entire arena was set up as maze and the goal for the eight teens was to navigate through the maze. To add to this, they also had to dodge two Deadly Nadders, one blue and one purple, who not only fired flames but also spikes from their tails!

"Today is all about ATTACK! Nadders are quick and light on their feet! Your job is to be quicker and lighter!"

"AAAAAH! I'm _really_ beginning to question your teaching methods!" Fishlegs yelled as he narrowly avoided Nadder spikes

Gobber ignored that and continued "Look for its blind spot. Every dragon has one. Find it, hide in it, and strike!"

Ruffnut and Tuffnut tried to follow that advice when they came face to face with the blue Nadder. Unfortunately that was not working well for Ruffnut.

"Ugh! Do you _ever_ bathe?"

"If you don't like it, then just get your own blind spot!" Tuffnut said, shoving his sister.

"How about I give _you_ one?!" However their argument was cut off as the Nadder, who now knew they were there shot deadly spikes at them! They ran away, just managing to avoid the spikes.

"Blind spot, yes. Deaf spot? Not so much."

Hicca decided to give another shot in asking for Night Furies. "So, is there another book we could get on Night Furies? Or maybe we could ask Trader Johann when he comes on next visit." Distracted, Hicca didn't realize two things. One, she got separated from her brother and two, the purple Deadly Nadder has spotted her and was getting ready to fire! Luckily Raeda, who was nearby, saw this and managed to save Hicca from being burnt to death!

"Why are you two suddenly asking about Night Furies in the middle of training?" Raeda asked, more curious than annoyed, as they ran away to avoid the Nadder.

"We were just wondering because the Dragon Manual had nothing about them." Hicca replied half-honestly.

Hiccup, meanwhile, also decided to try the same thing his sister did "Hey, so how would one sneak up on a Night Fury?" He asked Gobber.

Gobber, annoyed at him and his sister for not focusing, decided to be brief "No one's ever met one and lived to tell the tale. NOW, GET IN THERE!"

But that did not deter the stubborn Haddock boy "I know, I know, but hypothetically-" He started to ask before being cut off by Astrid as she and Snotlout were crouched down beside a maze wall with the blue Deadly Nadder inches away. "Get down!" she whispered at Hiccup. Deciding to save the questions for later, Hiccup crouched down behind Snotlout as Astrid looked ahead waiting for the right opportunity.

On the side opposite to the three teens, Hicca and Raeda came up. Raeda, who saw Astrid and realized what she was going to do, silently signalled Hicca to get back, leaving space for the other three.

As the blue Nadder had its' back turned, oblivious to the teens behind it, Astrid and Snotlout managed to tuck and roll safely to where Hicca and Raeda were. Hiccup, however wasn't as lucky as the weight of the shield held him back, alerting the Nadder of his presence! The Nadder then went after him and came across Raeda, Snotlout and Astrid. Raeda, seeing her opportunity, got her bow and arrow ready. However, Snotlout, hoping to impress Astrid, shoved Raeda out of the way.

"Watch out, Rae. I'll take care of this." With that, he threw his hammer which hit the maze wall instead, amusing the blue Nadder and earning glares from Raeda and Astrid.

"The sun was in my eyes, Astrid and Raeda. What do you two want me to do, block out the sun? I could do that, but I don't have time right now!" he defended himself as the three of them ran away from the Nadder.

No longer being chased by one the Nadders, Hiccup turned to Gobber "They probably take the daytime off. You know, like a cat. Has anyone ever seen one napping?" Behind him the other teens ran away from the two Deadly Nadders, with the blue one knocking down walls while chasing Astrid. Astrid then jumped on top of one of the falling maze walls and noticed that Hiccup was directly in her path.

"HICCUP!" she yelled but it was too late. She fell on top of him with her axe stuck in his shield.

"Oooh! Love on the battlefield!" Tuffnut jeered.

"She could do better." Ruffnut taunted.

Just then, the purple Deadly Nadder came after the rest of the teens, launching its spines at them. Luckily for them, some of the spines got deflected by a shield as Raeda bravely came in front of the Nadder, her bow and arrows ready. Having reached its' shot limit, the purple Nadder decided to retreat, leaving the blue Nadder, who was approaching Hiccup and Astrid, the latter still trying to get her axe out of the formers' shield. As the Nadder got closer to the two, Astrid decided to just take the axe with the shield still stuck on it and hit the Nadder in the face, causing the dragon to also retreat.

"Well done, Astrid and Raeda." Gobber said.

"Thanks Gobber." Raeda said, pleased with herself.

Astrid, however, was not happy at all. She turned to Hiccup who was still on the ground. "Is this some kind of a joke to you?! Our parents' war is about to become ours! Figure out which side you're on!" she shouted at him. Wordlessly, Hiccup got up and left. Hicca stayed back, her blood started to boil after watching Astrid yell at her brother.

"Hey Astrid!" she yelled as she came up to her and shoved her, much to everyone else's shock "What is your problem?! Hiccup is not the only one who messed up and you know it! And yet you're still coming after him just because he accidently got in your way-"

"Exactly! He got in my way! That's what you two always do! We're here fighting for our lives and here you two are, getting in every ones way and causing more disaster than there already is!" Astrid shouted.

There was silence in the arena. Raeda was about to say something when Hicca beat her to it "That's what we are to you? The Village Screw-Ups just like to most of the Vikings here? In that case, I should apologise. Really, I should. I'm sorry that out of all the teens in this village I chose to be friends with you! Because right now, I'm seriously wondering why I ever did!" Angry and hurt, Hicca walked out of the Arena, but not before adding something else "You know what Astrid? You may be the best in dragon training; actually you may be the best young warrior in Berk. But as a person? You're no better than anyone in this village. In fact, you're THE WORST!" She then left, ignoring the surprise gasps from the other teens.

For a moment no one said or did anything. Then Raeda left, throwing a glare in Astrids' direction, to join Hicca. As soon as she caught up with Hicca, for a second, neither of the girls said anything, until Raeda spoke up "Wow, Hicca. Just wow. How long have you've been keeping that bottled up?"

"A long time." Hicca admitted.

The Henderson girl then asked a question that has been on her mind for awhile "What happened to you two? Back then you, Astrid and Hiccup used to be inseparable. How did you guys go from_ that_ to _this_?"

Hicca took a deep breath before answering her question "You remember that point in our lives when our parents started training us to become warriors, teaching us to fight and all?"

Raeda nodded, remembering clearly how her parents trained her day and night to reach perfection. Before she spent most of her time going nature walks, observing the various flowers and herbs that grew there and collecting seeds so that she could grow some of the plants at home. Ever since her parents started training her, she barely had time to do that anymore.

Hicca then continued "Astrid took that seriously. Like you, she trained every chance she got except it was by choice. And it paid off. She became one of the best. Hiccup and I on the other hand? We weren't so lucky. When we realized that the only weapon we could use was a dagger, we decided to try other ways to show our worth to the village. That was when we started building inventions. You know very well how those turned out."

Again Raeda nodded. The Haddock twins did have some great ideas, but because of their inexperience, their inventions had brought disastrous results to the village!

"We were already misfits because of our small sizes, but we added more fuel to that because of our inventions. Then one day, Astrid stopped talking to us. She just ignored us and when she did notice us, she always gave us a glare. Guess she saw that we were more trouble than we were worth and decided to hang out with other, more Viking-like, teens."

After hearing that, Raeda suddenly stopped and looked at Hicca "You guys are anything but trouble. You're both smart and brave. No one, not even Gobber, could come up with different inventions like you guys can. And bravery is not just fighting off enemies, its being able to face your troubles and still hang on. You two have been doing that for years. Even when everyone puts you two down, you guys manage to bounce right back like it never hit you."

This made Hicca smiled, glad to have a friend like Raeda. Soon the two girls reached the forge where they were met by a dejected–looking Hiccup. "Hey sis, hey Raeda. You did a good job in training today, Rae." He said, looking up to the girls.

"Thanks Hiccup. Listen; don't take what Astrid said personally. Yeah, you messed up today but you weren't the only one. I mean, did you see Snotlout throwing his hammer at the blue Nadder? At least you didn't come up with excuses." Raeda said, trying to cheer him up.

"He didn't even come up with an excuse that made sense." Hicca added.

Hiccup couldn't help but chuckle at that.

"So you made any new drawings lately?" Hicca asked Raeda. Raeda then took out her sketch book which she kept in a pocket of her quiver and showed the twins. Hiccup and Hicca may be able to make accurate drawings, but Raedas' artwork surpassed both of theirs combined! Not only is she accurate in drawing still life, but her abstract work is absolutely mesmerizing. The twins can't help but be amazed at her creativity every time they see her work.

Raeda then told them the inspirations behind each artwork and that began their chain of conversations, putting Raeda at ease once again and making Hicca and Hiccup forget about the Nadder incident. This lasted all through the afternoon until Raeda got up.

"I have to go guys. Just because my parents are gone doesn't mean I can slack off that much. If I fall behind on my training, they will find out." She said, picking up her bow and quiver.

The twins nodded understandingly; gratefully they get to at least get some time to hang out with her. After Raeda left, Hiccup and Hicca turned to each other, knowing exactly what to do now.

"To the Night Furies?"

"To the Night Furies."


	6. New Friendships

**Disclaimer: I do not own How to train your dragon**

**Chapter 6: New Friendships**

Moments later, they arrived at the Cove with each twin carrying a fish and Hiccup holding up a shield just in case. They walk through passageway of the Cove with Hiccup leading his with his shield in front until it got stuck between the rocks of the narrow path.

"Uh, we forgot to check something." Hiccup said as he struggled to get his shield out of the way.

"Yeah, no kidding." Hicca said, grateful that she didn't bring a shield.

Realizing that the shield wasn't going to come out, Hiccup gave up and decided to crawl under the shield followed by his sister. As they got up, they started looking around for the Night Furies who seemed to have disappeared. Unbeknownst to them, the two Night Furies were perched high up on the rocks, observing the two humans.

Only when Hiccup and Hicca turned around they saw the two dragons watching them. The dragons then jumped to the ground approaching the two kids cautiously while Hiccup and Hicca stood there holding their fishes out as an offer to the dragons. Then the dragons' pupils turned into slits as they started growling.

On a hunch, Hiccup and Hicca took out their daggers that they brought with them. This caused the dragons to get in position to pounce on Hiccup and Hicca. The twins then dropped their daggers. Seeing that this did not calm the dragons, they simultaneously lifted their own daggers with their feet and tossed it to the pond. This put the Night Furies at ease as their pupils became wider and they adopted a more curious look. They then slowly walked towards the twins who held the fishes out for them to take. To the twins' surprise, the Night Furies open their mouth to reveal gums where their teeth should be.

"Uh, I'm not the only one who's seeing this right?" Hicca asked.

"No you're not. Huh. Toothless. I could've sworn you had..." Hiccup was then cut off as sharp teeth appeared from both the dragons' mouth. The dragons then snatched the fish out of the kids' hands and ate it in one go.

"...Teeth." Hiccup said in shock.

"At least we still have all our fingers." Hicca said equally shocked.

The dragon then got closer to the twins until they had them cornered against a rock.

"Uh, uh, no, no, no. W-we don't have any more." Hiccup said nervously

"That was all we have, sorry." Hicca said in a soft voice.

Hearing that the two Night Furies turned to look at each other then made some retching sounds. This confused Hicca and Hiccup, until the two dragons regurgitated half of their fish, one fish on each twins' lap. The dragons then sat on their haunches and looked between the twins and the regurgitated fish.

Realizing what they were supposed to do, Hicca turned to her brother "I will only do this if you do this." She said.

Hiccup sighed, and then took a bite out of his half saliva-coated fish as his sister did the same. It took all they had not to throw up the disgusting fish as they turned to the dragons, convincing them that the fish was actually good. The dragons then swallowed, telling the twins that they have to do that. With a sigh both twins swallowed, turning green.

They then gave the dragons a small smile which the dragons tried to replicate, shocking both Hiccup and Hicca. The twins then looked at each other before getting up and reaching one hand each towards the Night Furies. However, it did not look like the Night Furies were ready to trust them just yet. Instead, they gave a warning growl and went somewhere else. The twins then decided to stay in the Cove and observe the dragons a bit more. During this, the two discovered that the dragons were mates when they their displayed affection for each other, like nuzzling and warbling each other in a loving way. When the Night Furies settled down for a nap, to their annoyance they found the twins suddenly sitting close to them offering them friendly smiles. The Night Furies simply huffed and each used a wing as a drape. Seeing this opportunity, Hiccup and Hicca tried to touch the dragons only to be caught by said dragons as they lifted their wings. Caught, the twins simply walked away, leaving the dragons to sleep in peace.

Awhile later, the dragons woke up to find the two humans were still there. Curious, both the dragons went to where the humans were to see what they were doing. Hicca and Hiccup, who were drawing the dragons on the dirt with sticks, noticed the dragons were behind them but neither said anything as they continued drawing. After observing what the twins were doing the dragons looked at each other before going somewhere. Puzzled, the twins looked up and were stunned to find that the dragons had each uprooted a tree and began dragging the trees in the sand. Hiccup and Hicca could only watch in amazement as the two dragons did their version of drawing. When they were done, Hiccup and Hicca started walking around observing the artwork made by the two dragons.

Their thoughts were then interrupted by two sudden growls, again directed at Hiccup who stopped in confusion. Hicca turned and saw that her brother had stepped on one of the lines. She rushed to him and pulled him from there, careful not to ruin the artwork.

"Don't step on the lines. These guys are just like Raeda whenever she finishes her artwork." She whispered.

Hiccup nodded in understanding and both of them carefully stepped over the lines, being careful not to bump into each other. When they made it to a clear space, they then noticed that they were both inches away from the two Night Furies. The twins tried once again to reach their hand out only to get the same response from both dragons. The twins then tried a different approach. They each kept one hand up and looked away, letting the dragons decide to trust them or not. Both Night Furies, realizing the significance of this, decided to trust the two kids. The female Night Fury pressed her snout on Hiccas' hand while the male Night Fury pressed his snout on Hiccups'. Awestruck, Hiccup and Hicca looked up at the Night Furies, who looked back at them and snorted as they went off.

The twins still amazed at what happened looked at each other with only one word said "Wow."


	7. The Tailfin

**Disclaimer: I do not own How to train your dragon, neither the book nor the movie**

**Chapter 7: The Tailfin**

"...And with one twist, he took my hand, and swallowed it whole. And I saw the look on his face. I was delicious. He must have passed the word, because it wasn't a month before another one of them took my leg."

Later on, the twins went back to Berk to join Gobber and the other teens for dinner at the watch tower as Gobber shared the tale of how he lost his limbs. Hicca and Astrid refused to acknowledge each others' presence after the Nadder incident and when they did make eye contact, they both glared daggers at each other.

"Isn't it weird to think that your hand was inside a dragon? Like if your mind was still in control of it, you could have killed the dragon from the inside by crushing his heart, or something." Fishlegs said, earning weird looks from the others.

This caused Hicca to roll her eyes "That is completely flawed. When a persons' arm gets cut off, so does the nerves that connects the arm to the brain. Since the brain has no way to send nerve impulses to the arm, it can no longer be in control of it at all. What Fishlegs is saying completely defies that." She whispered to her brother who nodded in understanding. He doesn't have the level of knowledge that his sister has in medicine, but he knew enough to be able to keep up with her.

"I swear, I'm so angry right now! I'll avenge your beautiful hand and your beautiful foot. I'll chop off the legs of every dragon I fight. With my face!" Snotlout boasted.

"At least he'll use his head for something." Hiccup whispered to his sister causing her to giggle.

"Un-unh. It's the wings and the tails you really want. If it can't fly, it can't get away. A _downed_ dragon is a _dead_ dragon." Gobber informed them.

This made the Haddock twins look up, horrified. One look exchanged and they knew exactly what the other was thinking.

Oblivious to the Haddock twins' reaction, Gobber then got up "Alright. I'm off to bed. You should be, too. Tomorrow we get to the big boys. Slowly but surely making our way up to the Monstrous Nightmare. But who'll win the honour of killing it? "

"It's gonna be me. It's my destiny. See?" Tuffnut bragged showing everyone his mark.

Fishlegs gasped "Your Mom let you get a tattoo?"

"It's not a tattoo. It's a birthmark."

"Okay, I've been stuck with you since birth, and that was never there before." Ruffnut said.

"Yes, it was. You've just never seen me from the left side until now."

Astrid then turned and noticed that two people were missing. Walking towards the spiral stairs, she saw Hiccup and Hicca leaving in a hurry. She then dismissed it and went back to where the others were. What those two were up to was not something she would care about, especially not after today.

Hiccup and Hicca made their way to the forge, their goal clear in their minds.

"A downed dragon is a dead dragon." Hicca stated.

"Not if we do something about it." Hiccup said with a determined look.

The two then worked rigorously, finding every scrap of metal and leather they could find. After they were done, Hiccup held up the finished product, a prosthetic tailfin.

"You think this will work?" He asked his sister.

"Only one way to find out." She replied. Then a thought entered her mind "Hey bro, I was thinking. Why don't we name the two Night Furies? Just to avoid confusion. If you don't mind I would like to name the female Night Fury."

"That's exactly what I was thinking of. I even have a name picked for the male Night Fury."

"I also have one picked for the female."

They then spoke at the same time "Toothless. Wait, what?"

"We can't name them both Toothless." Hicca said with her arms crossed.

"You're right. There's only one thing to do." Hiccup said as he went and picked up at dagger "Call it." He said as he tossed the dagger in the air.

"Black." Hicca said just before the dagger landed. They both took a closer look at the dagger and saw...

"Ha! Grey side! Pick a new name." A year ago the Haddock twins heard a story from Gobber about how the Hysterics' chief, Norbert the Nutjob, decided his prisoners' fate by tossing his axe. From that story, the twins got the idea to get a dagger and paint one side black and the other side grey and use it to help them with some of their decisions.

Hicca huffed at losing the right to the name then tried to come up with a new one "Let's see. New name, new name, new name..." She then saw the Night Fury scales she collected the other day on her table and got an idea. "Midnight. I will name the female Night Fury Midnight." She declared.

The next day, the two of them arrived at the Cove early morning before dragon training, each carrying a heavy basket.

"Toothless! Midnight! Come on out, it's breakfast time!"

The Night Furies then came up to them, seeming to like their new names. Hicca and Hiccup then opened their baskets, revealing fishes to the two dragons.

"Okay, that's disgusting. Uh... we've got some salmon, some nice Icelandic cod, and a whole smoked eel." Hiccup said. Just then Toothless and Midnight both backed away from the piles with a repulsed look directly towards to smoked eel. Hiccup then went to pick up the eel from Toothless' pile, causing both dragons to back away further.

"No, no, no, no! It's okay. Yeah, I don't really like eel much either." Hiccup said as he threw the eel away.

"Let me just get that." Hicca said as she picked up the eel from Midnights' pile and quickly threw it away. "Sorry about that, guys. We'll be sure to remember not to get eel next time."

Toothless and Midnight then went to eat the fish. While they were doing that Hiccup quietly took the tailfin he brought with him and moved behind Toothless, while his sister kept an eye on the dragons. After a bit of struggle in trying to keep Toothless' tail still, Hiccup got on top of the tail and managed to strap the tailfin on. Unbeknownst to him, Toothless who finished his meal started noticing a sudden weight on his tail. He then spread his wings while Midnight looked at Hiccup in confusion. 'What was he up to?'

Hicca then saw Toothless' reaction and tried to warn her brother but he wasn't paying attention.

"It's okay. Okay... okay... There. That's not too bad. It works." He muttered assessing the new tailfin.

"Uh, Hiccup? I really think you should get-" However she didn't get to finish her sentence as Toothless suddenly shot in the air with Hiccup in tow still on his tailfin!

"Whoa! No! No! No!"

"HICCUP!"

Just like before, Toothless started falling to the ground as the artificial tailfin could not open by itself. Before they could hit the ground, Hiccup manually opened the tailfin causing Toothless to take a sharp turn away from the ground.

Hicca sighed in relief, happy to see that their new invention was working perfectly. Midnight looked up at her now airborne mate, getting ready to join him. But then one look at the girl, she realized that Hicca would be left out because she would be the only one on the ground. An idea suddenly came to her. Hicca got the shock of her life as Midnight suddenly grabbed her shoulders by her claws and flew her up.

"Whoa! What the-! Midnight! Oh wow! Oh-" Hicca screamed as saw the saw the ground getting smaller. However, as she started chuckling nervously, slowly becoming amazed at the view.

As Toothless and Hiccup flew over the pond, Hiccup started to rejoice "Oh, my... it's working! Yes! Yes, we did it Hicca!"

This caused Toothless to realize that Hiccup was on his tail. With a snort, he used his tail to throw Hiccup into the pond. Unfortunately, that caused the artificial tailfin to close up and as a result, Toothless plummeted into the pond. This did not faze Hiccup though as he bobbed out of the pond feeling victorious.

Midnight then flew to the ground with a gentle landing as she let go of Hicca, causing the human girl to stumble.


	8. The Zippleback

**A/N: Here we go. Another update. Soon I'll be writing 'Riders of Berk' along with another story I have in mind. Please read and review.**

**Disclaimer: I do not own How to train your dragon**

**Chapter 8: The Zippleback**

"Today is about teamwork."

After their impromptu flight, Hiccup and Hicca made it back to the village in time for their next training exercise. The teens were put in four groups of two; Hiccup and Fishlegs, Snotlout and Tuffnut, Astrid and Ruffnut and Hicca and Raeda. Each teen held onto a bucket of water as the Arena was suddenly filled with smoke.

"Now, a wet dragon head can't light its fire. The Hideous Zippleback is extra tricky. One head _breathes_ gas, the other head _lights_ it. Your job is to know which is which." Gobber said as he watched the kids from a safe distance.

The teams of two had their backs facing each other as the smoke separated them from the other teams, making them unable to see anything.

Nervously, Fishlegs started stating facts about the Zippleback "Razor sharp, serrated teeth that inject venom for pre-digestion. Prefers ambush attack, by crushing its victims-"

Hiccup, who was already on edge about their assignment cut off Fishlegs' rambling "Will you please stop that?!"

Both teams Astrid and Ruffnut and Hicca and Raeda were quiet as they kept an eye out for the dragon. A thought suddenly came to Hicca.

"If we see one of the heads of the dragon, only one of us should throw water at it, since there will be a one in two chance of getting it wrong." She whispered to Raeda. Raeda nodded at that "Good idea. You throw the water first."

Snotlout and Tuffnut however did not have the same strategy "If that dragon shows either of his faces, I'm gonna-" Snotlout started to say before noticing a shadow "There!" He and Tuffnut then threw their buckets at what they thought were dragons only to hear two feminine screams.

The smoke cleared revealing to be Ruffnut and Astrid "Hey! It's us, idiots!" Ruffnut said, completely drenched.

Tuffnut was not bothered by this "Your butts are getting bigger. We thought you were a Dragon."

"Not that there's anything wrong with a dragon-esque figure." Snotlout said before getting punched in the face by Astrid. Ruffnut threw her bucket at Tuffnut causing him to fall. Suddenly, Tuffnut got pulled into the smoke! Astrid put an arm in front of Ruffnut, preventing her from going after her brother.

"Wait." She whispered. After a moment of silence, a tail swooped in from behind knocking both girls of their feet and Astrid to lose her bucket of water!

Tuffnut then emerged out of the smoke "OH, I'M HURT! I AM VERY MUCH HURT!" he yelled as he ran. Unfortunately, he didn't see where he was going and knocked right into...

"AHHHH!" Raeda and Hicca yelled as Tuffnut ran right into them causing them to also lose their buckets of water! "Tuffnut! You idiot!" Raeda shouted at the male Thorston twin who got up and continued to run away. That only left Hiccup and Fishlegs.

"Chances of survival are dwindling into single-digits now." Fishlegs said nervously.

Then one of the heads of the Zippleback emerged from the smoke and zeroed in on Fishlegs. Panicking, Fishlegs threw the water at the head. The Zippleback seemed unfazed as it began to spew out green gas while the other head came into view.

"Oh. Wrong head." Fishlegs said now scared. The Zippleback then blasted the green gas at Fishlegs!

"Fishlegs!" Gobber yelled in concern. Thankfully, Fishlegs managed to get out of there before the other Zippleback head could ignite the gas. Then there was one.

"Now, Hiccup!"

As the Zippleback raised both its' heads higher, Hiccup threw the bucket with all the strength he had. Unfortunately, it wasn't enough to reach the dragon and he ended up getting himself drenched. "Oh, come on!" He muttered as he held his bucket up. Luck and strength were not in his favour at all.

Then the Zippleback got him pinned, ready to fire at him.

"Hiccup!" Both Gobber and Hicca yelled in fear. Gobber was about to go in and help him, but then stopped. Suddenly the Zippleback started moving away from the boy in fear! Gobber and the teens were shocked by this. Since when did one of the weakest teen became intimidating to a dragon? Hicca quickly put two and two together and had her arms crossed and slowly shaking her head in amusement.

"BACK! BACK! BACK! Now, don't you make me tell you again! Yes, that's right. Back into your cage. Now, think about what you've done." As Hiccup got the dragon back into its' cage, he took out the eel he had hidden in his vest and threw it in to the cage, making the Zippleback back into a corner in fear.

As he locked up the cage, he turned back to see everyone, except Hicca, looking back at him in complete shock.

"Okay! So, are we done? Because Hicca and I've got some things we need to, uh... Yep. We'll... see you tomorrow! Come on Hicca!"

"See you guys later." Hicca said, casually waving at everyone as she left to join her brother.

"Wow." Raeda said finally breaking the silence. 'How in the world did Hiccup do that? Whatever it was, Hicca is obviously in on it.'

"You used the eel, didn't you?" Hicca asked as soon as they were away from the arena. Hiccup nodded.

"How else?"

"Well played, bro. Well played."

"Did you see the looks on the others face?"

"I know, right? They were looking like they saw a ghost or something. Fishlegs even dropped and he didn't realise it. Even Astrid was shocked and speechless. I didn't even think that was possible."

"Come on, let's go to the Cove. I know two dragons who are going to get double the amount of fish this time." Hiccup said. They broke into a run towards the forest.

"You know, I have a feeling that things are going to be a lot different from now onwards." Hicca said as they ran.

Little did she know, her prediction will come true in a few weeks. This was just the beginning.


	9. Nearly Caught

**A/N: Here's another chapter. And in response to one of the reviews I got. This is actually going to be a Hiccup x Astrid. Sorry to disappoint you if you were wanting or expecting something different but I love hiccstrid too much to not write about it. It won't come immediately but it will end up like that. Enjoy. Read and review**

**Disclaimer: I do not own How to train your dragon.**

**Chapter 9: Nearly Caught**

The next month, the Haddock twins worked most of the nights to improve Toothless' prosthetic tailfin. They started by making saddles. The next morning, after chasing the two dragons down for hours to get the saddles on, they went on separate test flights with Hicca learning to get use to flying on Midnight and Hiccup trying to find a way to control Toothless' tailfin manually. It seemed to be going well, until Hicca and Midnight took a sharp turn, causing Hicca to fall off the saddle knocking Hiccup and Toothless, who were flying below them into the pond. This caused the two teens to come to the same conclusion; harnesses and riding vests.

So they spent the next night making the vests with ropes attached to the saddles to make them more secure. The next day, both teens and dragons worked on their flight until Hiccup and Toothless crash landed in a grassy field. Hicca landed her dragon on the field and got off Midnight to check on her brother and make sure he did not sustain any wounds. After she finished her quick check-up, they both turned around and saw Midnight and Toothless rolling around in the grass in a pure bliss.

Hicca picked up some of the grass and sniffed it "Smells like garlic." She commented. Seeing how much their dragons enjoyed the grass gave the twins an idea.

At the next dragon training, the teens once again had to face the Gronckle. This time they both snuck in the grass which they have dubbed as 'dragon nip'. When the Gronckle charged after Hiccup, he held the dragon nip in front of him, causing the dragon to stop as its pupils widened in the delight at the scent. The other teens, except Hicca and Astrid, were once again impressed and amazed at how Hiccup could easily defeat the dragon. They started hanging out with the Haddock twins more, trying to found out how Hiccup did it.

"I left my axe back in the ring. You guys go on ahead. I'll catch up with you." Hiccup said trying to get away.

"Oh, so did I. I'll come with you." Hicca said and they ran back nearly running into Astrid who seemed a bit suspicious.

Soon, the two made it back to the Cove, where Hiccup started giving Toothless a good scratch. He then scratched under the chin causing the Night Fury to instantly drop in deep sleep. Out of curiosity, Hicca did the same with Midnight and got the same result.

"We need to keep a journal with us to write all this stuff down." Hicca said with her brother nodding in agreement.

Next day in the Arena, the teens were up against the blue Deadly Nadder (Gobber decided to be nice enough to only let one Deadly Nadder out this time. This didn't really make a difference to the teens though.). As the Nadder charged after Hicca, she dropped her axe and shield, making the Nadder stop in confusion. 'Why was this human not attacking?' A battle cry made Hicca look up and saw Astrid running towards the Nadder with her axe ready. Hicca frantically scratch the Nadder under its chin, trying to find its' weak spot. She found it just in time as the Nadder instantly dropped to the ground causing Astrid to stop and look at her in shock. That night Hicca and Hiccup went to the Great Hall for dinner. They went to sit with Raeda and what they didn't expect was to be instantly swarmed by all the Vikings, teens and adults. All that is except for a blonde Hofferson girl who was not happy with the turn of events.

Another flight trial with Hiccup and Toothless resulted in another crash-landing on to the ground. Hiccup slowly tried to get up, cradling his left arm, as his sister came.

"Hiccup! Are you ok?" Hicca asked, worried.

"Don't worry sis. I'm fine." Hiccup said, still holding his left arm.

Hicca, knowing her brother too well, was not convinced. She grabbed his left arm, ignoring his protest, and pulled down his sleeve revealing his bleeding arm. She then gave him a look that said '_Who are you trying to fool.'_

"Sit down bro. Good news is you're not going to need stitches. Just need to get this wrapped." She then brought out her first aid kit and did what she did best; healing people. Toothless and Midnight came over to the two, curious to see what Hicca was doing.

"Dragon and dragoness, I present to you my sister; the healer." Hiccup said, gesturing to Hicca with his right hand. Hicca smiled at this and continued 'Maybe when dad comes back, I might be able to finally tell him. Hopefully it can work out.'

Then one day, Hiccup and Hicca brought their tools to the Cove to work on Toothless' saddle without being spotted by their new fans. As they were working Hiccup looked up and saw Toothless chasing a tiny spotlight being reflected from his hammer. He then moved the hammer, making the light move as well making Toothless chase after it. Hicca, who was watching this, picked a dagger (Midnight and Toothless trust the twins enough to let them bring the dagger without fear of being attacked) and used it to shine a light on Midnight, who started chasing it as well. With their entire focus on their own spot of light, both Night Furies pounced and accidently head-butted each other, causing Hiccup and Hicca to burst out laughing at the dragons' confused reactions.

Next dragon training the teens fought against another new dragon.

"Meet the Terrible Terror." Gobber announced. But instead of a large, intimidating dragon that the teens were used, to a small and seemingly harmless dragon came out of the cage.

Tuffnut was amused by this "Ha! That's like the size of my-" As if it detected the insult, the Terrible Terror flew to Tuffnut in a blur and started to bite his nose, making the other teens cautiously step back.

"AH! GET IT OFF! OH, I'M HURT! I AM VERY MUCH HURT!" Tuffnut yelled in pain. The dragon then got off Tuffnut and started chasing a spotlight on the ground, created by Hicca and her shield. It then moved back into the cage with Hicca behind to close the small door, once again impressing everyone who is present except for Hiccup and Astrid.

"Wow, she and Hiccup are better than you _ever_ were." Tuffnut said to Astrid as he got up. This made Astrid glare harder as she looks at Hicca, who had just finished locking the gate. 'How are they doing this?'

Angry at the Haddock twins for outshining her, Astrid decided to go to the forest to train and to let out her frustrations. 'How can those two suddenly become good? They're not even using any weapons at all! They are both up to something and I am going to find out what it is.' The memory of the Nadder incident then came to mind as well as what Hicca told her. She was completely shocked at the Hiccas' outburst along with everyone else and a small part of her did feel guilty. 'No. I can't feel sorry about this. I am warrior. I need to do this for my family.'

She then got out her axe, did a tuck and roll and was about to throw it at a tree when she stopped. Right in front of her were Hiccup and Hicca, with Hiccup carrying something in his arms. Both of them froze for a second, not expecting to run into Astrid, and then ran off. Astrid tried to follow them, but lost their trail, much to her annoyance and frustration. 'I will definitely get them next time.'

Meanwhile, the Haddock twins made it to Cove where Hiccup was putting on the finishing touches to the Toothless' tailfin and saddle. He and his sister modified the left stirrup of the saddle so that Hiccup could control the prosthetic tailfin with his left foot. He brought a rope, a peg and a hammer and started pounding the peg to the ground.

"What are you doing?" Hicca asked as she got on Midnight.

"I need to see which tail position does what. I'm making a cheat sheet."

"Can't you do that without being tethered? 'Learn on the job.' Like Gobber always say."

"Well that method nearly got me killed on the first day of dragon training. So I'll just stick to my method." Hiccup replied as he tied the rope onto the saddle. Hicca just shrugged "Well you better learn fast or Midnight and I will be far better than you two." Midnight warbled in agreement. Hiccup and Toothless just rolled their eyes. No way were they going to let the girls be better than them!

As Hicca and Midnight flew close by, Hiccup and Toothless worked out the different tail positions. It was all working out fine, until the rope snapped causing Hiccup and Toothless to fly backwards. They then bumped into Hicca and Midnight who happened to be flying by and all four of them crashed into a tree. Luckily the harnesses prevented the twins from flying further away from their dragons.

As Hicca got up, she noticed that her safety hook has been bent, making her tethered to Midnight. "Um, Hiccup? I think we got a problem here." She said nervously.

"Actually sis, we've got two problems." Hiccup said, equally nervous. Hicca turned and saw that her brother had the same problem. "Oh boy."

Late at night, back in the village, most of the people have gone to bed. Hiccup and Hicca were leaning against one of the houses, acting casual as a man walked by them.

"Hiccup. Hicca." The man greeted. The twins waved back. As soon as the man left, the twins check to make sure no one is around and then they walked ahead pulling their harnesses to keep Toothless and Midnight with them.

"Hiccup, I will have you know that I think this is a stupid plan that's going to give us a one-way ticket to banishment." Hicca whispered to her brother.

"Well, I didn't hear you come up with a better plan." Hiccup retorted as they quietly made their way to the forge. When they reached the forge Toothless stuck his head in a bucket and threw it off while Midnight accidently knocked some swords with her tail. Both these actions made some noises which caught the attention of a certain girl nearby.

Inside the forge, Hicca and Hiccup work fast to fix the safety hook when suddenly a voice called out to them. "Hiccup? Hicca? Are you two in there?"

This caused the twins to freeze "Astrid." Hiccup mouthed to his sister.

"I can't go." Hicca mouthed back. She was still not on speaking terms with Astrid. Hiccup then got out of the forge, pulling Toothless along with him, much to the dragons' dismay.

"Astrid. Hey! Hi, Astrid. Hi, Astrid. Hi, Astrid." Hicca who was overhearing this, silently face-palmed. Her brother was not good at acting subtle at all. She finished fixing her own safety hook and started working on her brothers', while also listening in to the conversation outside.

"I normally don't care what people do, but you and your sister are acting weird." Astrid said.

Just then Toothless spotted a sheep that froze at the sight of a dragon. This caused Hiccup to be pulled back to the door. Hiccup gave a nervous laugh as Hicca silently scolded Toothless, trying to get him to stay.

"Well, _weirder_." Astrid said, looking at Hiccup.

Suddenly, Hiccup was pulled inside. Astrid rushed inside the forge, but to her shock, it was empty. Unbeknownst to her, two teens and two dragons were rushing into the forest, back to a familiar place.

The next day came as a nerve-wracking moment for most of the teens. Today, they wouldn't be doing any exercises.

"All right everyone! If seen each and every one of you perform in this Arena and I've come to a decision on the top two who will be chosen to go head to head to see who will win the honour of killing their first dragon." He then pause and continued. "This time, however, is going to be a bit different. I decided that instead of making it a top two it's going to be a top three." That got Fishlegs, Snotlout, Ruffnut, Tuffnut and Raeda more excited and nervous. That has never happened before. Obviously Hiccup and Hicca were going to get chosen for their outstanding and consistent performances, but who's going to be the third person chosen?

"The three people chosen are: Hicca, Hiccup and Astrid. Congratulations you three. Raeda, I'm sorry but you just missed out by a hair. Better luck next time."

Raeda just looked down, a bit disappointed. Hiccup and Hicca looked at her and felt upset for her and guilty. They were breezing through each training exercise with their new tricks and Raeda was struggling to keep up. They know how important it is for her to get chosen. Maybe they could have let her in on their secret. But they were not sure how she would take their secret. They befriended creatures who have been enemies with Vikings for three hundred years. The same creatures who have killed majority of her ancestors and her relatives. Would she accept their secret or would she turn her back on them and tell everyone? They weren't so sure.

"The three of you train hard and may the best recruit win." Gobbers' voice broke the Haddock twins out of their thoughts. After a round of congratulations, everyone left the Arena except for Hiccup, Hicca and Raeda.

"Hey, congratulations again guys for making it to the top 3." Raeda said to the twins.

"Thanks Rae. I'm really sorry you didn't get chosen as well." Hicca said. She truly was.

"It's fine. I wasn't really looking forward to the extra training I would have to do if I did get chosen." Raeda said a bit downcast. She then added "It's just a bit frustrating all that training I went through only to narrowly miss out the chance to really show my parents I can be a good shield maiden."

Again, the twins felt guilty. Hiccup then spoke up "Rae, you are already a good shield maiden. You don't need to be chosen for this to prove that. I can't think of anyone else who would have the courage to charge into a battlefield with nothing but bows and arrows, two easily breakable weapons, and make them look intimidating."

"Yeah, Rae. If that doesn't show your parents that you're a good shield maiden, then it's too bad for them because they are missing out on a lot of potential, not just in combat but in arts."

This made Raeda smile "Thanks, guys. I really appreciate it. Good luck against Astrid and each other. I'll be sure to get front row seats to watch you guys."


	10. First Official Flight

**Disclaimer: I do not own How to train your dragon.**

**Chapter 10: First Official Flight**

A battered ship came to the docks of Berk with its' occupants not so happy. Gobber approached the ship as the people were coming out.

"Well, I trust you found the nest at least?" He asked.

"Not even close." Stoick said, frustrated at their failure.

"Ah. Excellent." Gobber said sarcastically.

"I hope you had a little more success than me." Stoick said.

"Well, if by success, you mean that your parenting troubles are over with, then... yes." Gobber replied

Before Stoick could ask what he meant by that, some of the villagers who stayed behind walked by him congratulating him.

"Congratulations, Stoick! Everyone is so relieved."

"Out with the old and in with the new, right?!"

"No one will miss those old nuisances!"

"The village is throwing a party to celebrate!"

Hearing that, Stoick paled and turned to Gobber "They're gone." He asked fearfully.

"Yeah... most afternoons. But who can blame them? I mean the life of celebrity's very rough. They can barely walk through the village without being swarmed by their new fans." Gobber told him.

"Hiccup and Hicca?" Stoick asked, shocked by what he was hearing.

"Who would've thought, eh? Those two has this way with the beasts."

What those didn't know was that the twins in question were off flying with two of the "beasts".

"Okay there, bud, we're gonna take this nice and slow." Hiccup said before he consulted his newly made cheat sheet which was clipped onto his saddle. "Here we go. Here we go... position three, no, four." The teens and dragons flew downwards and then through the sea stacks with perfect manoeuvres.

"Yes, it worked!" "Alright!"

All was going well until...

"Sorry!" Hiccup shouted as he flew Toothless into one of the sea stacks "That's my fault." He apologised as he flew the dragon into another one seconds later. Annoyed, Toothless hit him with his ear plate "Yeah, yeah, I'm on it."

"You have a cheat sheet in front of you and you're still crashing into sea stack. That's just sad." Hicca called out as she and Midnight flew by the boys' side.

"Hey! I'd like to see you try controlling half of the a dragons tailfin!" Hiccup retorted before checking his cheat sheet "Position four, uh, three."

Then he and Toothless flew upwards followed by Hicca and Midnight.

"Woo-hoo! This is so cool!" Hicca shouted feeling the rush of adrenaline kick in.

"Oh, this is amazing! The wind in my..." Before Hiccup could finish his sentence, the rapid wind blew the cheat sheet out of the clip of the saddle, making it fly above Hiccup. "CHEAT SHEET! STOP!" he yelled out as he tried to catch the cheat sheet. He caught it, but when he reached for it, his harness got unhooked from the saddle causing Hiccup and Toothless to free-fall, much to theirs and the girls horrors.

"HICCUP! TOOTHLESS!" Hicca yelled before she and Midnight dived down to try and save them "Hang on, guys! Hang on! We're coming!"

As they were falling, Hiccup tried desperately to get back on the saddle. "Alright! You gotta angle yourself! Okay, no, no, no... come back down towards me! Come back down- YOW!" He yelled as Toothless accidently hit him with his tailfin.

"Faster Midnight! Faster!" Hicca cried, hoping to get to the boys in time.

Fortunately, Hiccup just managed to reattach himself back to the saddle, with his cheat sheet in his mouth. Hicca and Hiccup then pulled their dragons out right at the last minute and into oncoming sea stacks. Hiccup tried to look at that the cheat sheet, but the wind was making him unable to see it. He then decided to throw the cheat sheet away and let his instincts take over. Both he and his sister guided their dragons through the sea stacks without bumping into each other. They moved in perfect sync, it was like all four of them have the same mindset.

After they made it out of the sea stacks, it took a few minutes for the twins to register what happened before they raised their hands up in triumph. "YEEAHHH!" "WE DID THAT!" they shouted. Midnight and Toothless decided to add to the celebration by firing one plasma blast each, much to the twins' dismay.

"Ah, come on!" "Oh great!" they muttered as they flew into the inferno.

After that, they landed on a deserted place. Hicca and Midnight were catching fishes to eat while Hiccup and Toothless were gathering wood to get a fire going. The four of them sat down and enjoyed the view of the sunset, while eating fishes. Toothless and Midnight regurgitated one fish each to offer to their riders while their fishes were cooking.

"It's fine Midnight. My fish is almost done." Hicca said politely.

"Uh... no thanks. I'm good." Hiccup said showing Toothless his fish.

"Well, overall I'd say it was a good official first time flight." Hicca said.

"Yeah, if you ignore the near-death and the flying into fire part." Hiccup said sarcastically.

Suddenly a group of Terrible Terrors came by, attracted to the fish. As they came closer, Toothless and Midnight gave a warning growl, protectively keeping their fishes away from the smaller dragons. This did not deter the Terrible Terrors though as one of them grabbed the fish that Toothless regurgitated for Hiccup. Another Terror came and tried to snatch it away causing the two Terrors to start fighting. Toothless and Midnight snorted at the sight until one of the fish caught Toothless' eye. It started to move on its own! Toothless then took the fish and ate it, revealing another Terrible Terror behind the deception. Upset about losing the fish, the dragon was getting ready to fire at Toothless. But just as it opened its mouth, Toothless fire a plasma blast at its mouth, causing the dragon the fall down, then stumble away defeated.

"Not so fireproof on the inside, are you?" Hiccup noted.

"I'll add this to the journal." Hicca said, taking the journal out of her satchel.

As she was writing this new piece of information down, Hiccup tossed one of his fish towards the Terrible Terror. "There you go." The dragon ate it up instantly and then went to lie down next to Hiccup.

"Any idea on how we can use this in the nest training without anybody getting suspicious?" Hicca asked. When her brother didn't answer her, she looked up and saw him stroking the sleeping Terrible Terror next to him. She then got up and went to sit next to him.

Hiccup then came to a realisation "Everything we know about you guys is wrong."

"All this time, we've been fighting against dragons when we could be living in peace with them. It could have saved so many lives, both humans and dragons." Hicca said, looking at the sleeping Terror.


	11. The Helmets

**A/N: In answer to a question I got in the review; after I finish with this story, I will post riders and defenders of berk, then I will do HTTYD 2. I've already started on riders of berk. And MAYBE I will post one or two side stories. Enjoy this chapter! Please read and review. **

**Disclaimer: I do not own How to train your dragon.**

**Chapter 11: The Helmets**

At night Hiccup and Hicca went back to their room in the forge, contemplating on their new discovery. They didn't notice someone entering their room until they looked up and jumped from their places.

"Dad! You're back! Gobber's not here, so..." Hiccup said, trying to be casual while covering the drawings he and Hicca made of Toothless and Midnight.

"I know. I came looking for you two." Stoick said in a serious tone.

"You did?" Hiccup asked, surprised.

"Why?" Hicca asked wearily.

"You two have been keeping secrets." Stoick said bluntly. This caused the twins to start worrying, but they did their best not to show it.

"We...have?" Hiccup asked, trying to play dumb.

"W-what secrets?" Hicca asked as well.

"Just how long did you think you could hide it from me?"

"We don't know what you're..."

"Nothing happens on this island without me hearing about it."

"Oh?" Hiccup asked, getting more and more tense.

"So, let's talk about those dragons." Stoick said.

Hicca and Hiccup paled. How did he find out their secret? No wonder he looks grim. Oh, they have some explaining to do.

"Oh, Gods. Dad, we're so sorry. We were going to tell you. We just didn't know how to-" Hiccup began to explain but was then cut off by their dads' laughter. Shocked by this, the twins laughed nervously. Why is their dad laughing?

"You're...happy about this." Hicca stated with uncertainty.

"You're not... upset?" Hiccup asked.

"What?! I was hoping for this!" Stoick said with joy.

This confused the twins even further. What?

"Uh... you were?" Hiccup asked, wondering if they were on the same page.

"And believe me, it only gets better! Just wait 'till one of you spill a Nadder's guts for the first time! And mount your first Gronckle head on a spear! WHAT A FEELING!" Stoick said in excitement. This cause the twins to sigh. Of course, their dad would be talking about their performances in the Arena. There was no way he could miss something like that. The mention of the Nadders' gut and Gronckle head on a spear made Hicca mentally shudder. Those images were going to haunt her for a while.

Her father didn't notice her discomfort and continued. "You two really had me going there. All those years of two of the _worst_ Vikings Berk has ever seen! Odin, it was rough! I almost gave up on both of you! And all the while, you two were holding out on me! THOR ALMIGHTY!"

This made the twins crest-fallen. 'Two of the worst Vikings'? They knew that they weren't exactly the best with the way they always cause destruction to the village and their inability to any weapon other than a dagger, but were they _that _bad?

"Ah. With both of you doing so well in the ring, we _finally_ have something to talk about." Stoick said. He then sat down, eagerly waiting for his kids to speak. There was an awkward pause as the twins felt uncomfortable. This is what they've always wanted, yet now they wished this wasn't happening. Yes, they still want a better relationship with their dad but not like this, not because they were using tricks to be good at dragon training. Neither of them could say anything.

Stoick decided to break the silence. "Oh, I... brought you two something. To keep you safe in the ring." He then handed them two horned helmets.

"Wow. Thanks." Hiccup said sincerely.

"You didn't have to dad." Hicca said as she took her helmet.

"Your mother would've wanted both of you to have it. She had these made just for you two after you were born. Wear it proudly. Both of you deserve it. You've held up your end of the deal."

This made the twins uncomfortable again. If only he knew.

Hiccup then gave a fake-yawn "We should really get to bed."

"Yeah, we can't go into the Arena half-asleep." Hicca said, catching on to what her brother was doing.

Stoick realizing they were right started getting up to leave "Yes! Good! Okay. Good talk. See you back at the house. I hope you uh, like the hats." He said awkwardly as he stumbled on a few things on his way out.

"Yeah, good talk. We should definitely to this again."

"Thanks again for the hats."

Hiccup then looked at his sister and remembered something "Oh, dad wait!" He called out.

"Yes, son?"

"Uh, Hicca had something she needed to tell you about regarding the future." Hiccup said, giving a look to his sister that said 'tell him now'.

Knowing what her brother was talking about, Hicca took a deep breath "Uh, y-yes the future. Um...well I just...wanted to make sure you'll be able to come watch us at the Arena tomorrow." She said meekly, causing Hiccup to face-palm. That was not what he wanted her to say!

Oblivious to his sons' face-palm, Stoick answered Hiccas' question. "Of course, Hicca. In fact, I'll be getting the best view to watch you two."

"Good, that's good. So we'll just finish up here and head home." Hicca said still feeling nervous.

"Okay, don't stay up late either of you." With that he left.

Seeing the look on her brothers' face, Hicca spoke up "I know what you're going to say, Hiccup. I panicked, okay? I just wasn't ready to tell him that I want to be a healer."

"Hicca, do you realize how lucky you are? You know exactly who you are and who you're supposed to be. You have a gift that can help so many people if you are given the chance. I don't have that luxury! You know that!"

"I know, I know. Hopefully, if I don't get chosen for the final exam, I can try telling dad but..." She then went in deep thought, a distressed look on her face. Hiccup noticed that.

"Sis, are you okay?" He asked, worried.

"I don't think I can do this, Hiccup. Kill a dragon. I couldn't do it before and I definitely can't do it now. I don't what I'm going to do if I get chosen. I-" She started to panic. Hiccup then went by her side to give her a hug, calming her down.

"Sis, it's going to be okay. You won't get chosen. We'll let Astrid win and she'll get chosen. Tomorrow, you just run away from the dragon and let me do better than you. There'll be a less likely chance for you to get chosen that way." Hiccup said.

Hicca nodded, however still felt a bit panicked. With them, there's absolutely no guarantee that their plans will work. She just hope tomorrow will be an exception.

Trying to lighten his sisters' mood, Hiccup spoke up "You asked the chief if he was going to attend an event that no doubt every villager is going to come to. How are you the better liar than me?"

This worked. Forgetting her distress, Hicca rolled her eyes "Please! Have you ever heard your own lies?"


	12. Secret Revealed

**Disclaimer: I do not own How to train your dragon**

**Chapter 12: Secret Revealed**

The next, the Arena was filled with every Viking in the village, all there to see three teens battle it out to decide who will get chosen for the Final Exam.

On the ground were numerous barriers set up as a Gronckle roamed around, looking for targets. Hiding behind one of those barriers was Hiccup, who was then joined by Astrid. As Hiccup tried to move away, Astrid held his shield down " You and your sister better stay out of my way. I'm winning this thing."Astrid said firmly, before running off.

"Good. Please, by all means." Hiccup said sincerely as he got up. He looked to the side to and saw his sister behind another barrier, being sure to keep her distance from the dragon. He then looked up and saw his father watching him and his sister with a proud smile on his face. Hiccup held his axe and shield up, trying to show enthusiasm and failing. Unbeknownst to him, the Gronckle spotted him and started flying towards him.

Meanwhile, Astrid switched from barrier to barrier, determine to win. "This time! This time, for sure!" She said to herself. She then gave a battle cry and charged after the Gronkle-

-only to find it seemingly defeated by Hiccup already.

This pushed Astrid even further if possible.

"AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAUGGGGGHHHHHHHH! NO! NO! SON OF HALF-TROLL, RAT-EATING MUNGE BUCKET!" She yelled as she threw her axe in anger.

"Wait! Wait!" Stoick said, shushing the crowd.

"So, later." Hiccup said, trying to leave. But he was stopped by Gobber.

"Not so fast." He said

"Hicca and I are actually kinda late for-" He was then cut off by Astrid who held her axe close to Hiccups' neck.

"_What?!_ Late for what, exactly?!" Astrid said, angry at yet another defeat.

"Astrid, leave him alone!" Hicca shouted, walking closer to the two.

"Okay, quiet down. The elder has decided." Stoick announced giving space for Gothi, the village elder.

Gobber raised his hand pointing to Astrid. Gothi shook her to say no. Gobber then pointed to Hicca. Hicca closed her eyes and, along with her brother, held her breath. If Astrid wasn't chosen then it's either her or her brother and she didn't know which choice was worst. Again, Gothi shook her head to say no. As much as she was impressed by the young Haddock girls' performance in training, her medical skills were more impressive and the elder felt that Hicca would be a better healer than warrior.

That only left...

Gobber raised his hook above Hiccups' head and Gothi nodded. The crowd burst into applause. Hiccup was chosen!

"You've done it! You've done it, Hiccup! You get to kill the dragon!" Gobber exclaimed, congratulating his apprentice.

"Ha, ha! That's my boy!" Stoick said proudly, although he was a bit disappointed that his daughter didn't get chosen.

Hicca gave him a hug which, to everyone else, look like she was congratulating him.

She whispered in his ear "This is not part of the plan Hiccup! What are going to do now?"

Hiccup couldn't answer that as Fishlegs and Snotlout came and hoisted him on their shoulders.

"Heh. Oh, yeah! Yes! I can't wait. I am so..."

"... LEAVING! We're leaving. All of us. Let's pack up. Looks like the four of us are taking a little vacation, forever." Hiccup called to Toothless and Midnight as he walked in the Cove carrying a basket, with his sister walking behind him with her own basket.

"Hopefully we can find a place that is not in war with dragons." Hicca said.

"Yeah, that will be easy." Hiccup said sarcastically as he set his basket near a boulder and got down to check everything inside it. A _shring_ sound caused him to look up and see Astrid sit on top of the boulders, sharpening her axe with a stone.

"Aggh! What the- What are you doing here?" Hiccup asked, trying to sound casual. This caused his sister to turn around and see Astrid as well, causing her to panic. Oh no.

Astrid stopped sharpening her axe and turned to the twins "I want to know what's going on." She got off the boulder and walked closer to them. "No one just gets as good as you two do. _Especially_ you two. Start talking! Are you guys training with someone?" She asked, causing the two in question to stutter nervously.

"Uh... training?" Hiccup said, panicking.

"It better not involve these!" Astrid said, gesturing to the riding vests.

"I know this looks really bad, but you see...this is, uh..." Hiccup tried to explain, but then a sound from behind them caught Astrids' attention and she started moving towards it to investigate.

"Wait! Hang on, Astrid! We can explain." Hicca said desperately.

Hiccup then stepped in front of Astrid, trying to stop her. "You're right! You're right. We're through with the lies. We've been making... outfits. So, you got us. It's time everyone knew. Drag us back. Go ahead. Here we go." He then took her hand, which he regretted doing so as Astrid bends his arm back painfully causing Hiccup to fall. "OW! Why would you do that?!"

"That's for the lies." Astrid before dropping her axe making the handle bounce on Hiccups' stomach before catching. "And _THAT'S_ for everything else."

That pushed Hicca to the edge "Astrid, that's enough okay?! All we did was get better in training! That's what the whole village wanted us to do! So just back off!" She yelled, pushing Astrid back

"You back off, Hicca!" Astrid yelled shoving her back. Before Hicca could say anything else, Toothless and Midnight decided to make their presence known to the blonde girl, angry at her for attacking their humans.

Seeing them made Astrid gasp "Get down!" she said pushing Hiccup, who was starting to get up, back to the ground. Toothless saw this as an attack towards Hiccup and started charging towards her with Midnight right behind him.

"RUN! RUN!" Astrid yelled to the twins as she got up and got her axe ready. Before she could swing, Hiccup got up and snatched the axe out of her hands while Hicca came in front of the two dragons to calm them down.

"Guys, settle down! It's okay. Hiccup and I are fine. We're not hurt."

"It's okay! It's okay... she's a friend. It's okay." Hiccup added. He then turned to Astrid "You just scared them." He told her.

_"__I_ scared _them_?!" Astrid yelled incredulously. Then realization hit her. "Who is "them"?" she asked in a low voice with her eyes narrowed.

When neither of them could come up with an excuse, Hiccup spoke up "Astrid, Toothless and Midnight. Toothless and Midnight, Astrid." He introduced the three. He and his sister already knew what the outcome is going to be.

Just as they predicted, Astrid gave them a look of disgust and ran away from them, towards the path of the village.

"And there she goes." Hicca sighed. Of all the people to find out their secret, it had to be Astrid.

"Da, da, da! We're dead." Hiccup stated.

Glad that the blonde girl has left, Toothless and Midnight gave shrugs and started to leave.

"Whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa! Where do you two think you're going?!" Hiccup asked to the dragons.

"Get back here guys! We have a mission!" Hicca called out.

Astrid ran through the forest as fast as she could, turning around to make sure the Haddock twins weren't following her, when suddenly she was grabbed from above!

"Oh, Great Odin's ghost! Oh, this is it!" she yelled as she saw the view of the ground, not as amazed at the sight as Hicca was. Toothless then flew her on top of a tall tree, making her hang on to a branch before settling on top of it. Hicca and Midnight flew around the three of them.

"Hiccup! Hicca! Get me _down_ from here!" Astrid yelled.

"Or what Astrid?" Hicca yelled back, happy with the turn of events.

"You have to give us a chance to explain." Hiccup said.

"I am _not_ listening to _ANYTHING_ either of you have to say!" Astrid shouted.

"You heard that Hiccup? She obviously doesn't want to listen. Let's just leave her there." Hicca said, before guiding Midnight to leave.

"Hicca get _back _here!" Hiccup said in a soft yet strict voice. Rolling her eyes, Hicca made Midnight stay.

Hiccup then turned to Astrid "Then I won't speak. Just let me _show_ you. Please Astrid." He offered extending his hand for her to take. Astrid looked him, mentally debating on whether to agree or not, when Hicca spoke up.

"I hate to point out the obvious Astrid, but that's kind of the only choice you have. You know, if you still want to live." She said nonchalantly.

Realizing Hicca is right, Astrid reluctantly got on Toothless' saddle, pushing Hiccups' hand away. Toothless gave a growl, warning the girl not to do anything to harm Hiccup.

"Now, get me down." Astrid ordered.

Hiccup complied "Toothless, down. _Gently._" Toothless, however, had other plans. He started to slowly spread his wings. Catching on to what her mate was planning to do, Midnight flew Hicca a bit away from the three of them, giving Toothless a clear path. Oblivious, to what his dragon was up to, Hiccup turned to Astrid "See? Nothing to be afraid of." He soon regretted saying that as Toothless shot into the air!

"Wow, you guys never cease to amaze me." Hicca commented, watching Toothless fly at breakneck speed. She and Midnight then went to catch up with them.

"WHOA! TOOTHLESS! WHAT IS _WRONG_ WITH YOU?! BAD DRAGON! He's not usually like this." Hiccup yelled as Astrid screamed, completely frightened, trying to hang on.

Toothless then took a plunge towards the ocean. "Oh, no..." Hiccup muttered, realising what Toothless was going to do next. Toothless kept diving in and out of the ocean. "Toothless, what are you doing?! We need her to _like_ us!"

Hicca watched the scene in front of her from a safe distance with Midnight, impressed with the stunts Toothless was performing. "That actually looks like fun." She muttered. Midnight warbled in agreement.

Toothless then flew up and started spinning in the air, terrifying Astrid even further "And now the spinning. Thank you for nothing, you useless reptile." Hiccup said sarcastically.

Having had enough, Astrid breathed out "Okay! I am sorry! I'm sorry! Just get me off of this thing!" She pleaded, burying her face behind Hiccups back.

That was all Toothless needed to hear as he stopped spinning and flew upwards, towards the clouds with Midnight following him. When Astrid opened her eyes and looked up, she was awestruck by the sight. The clouds was like a soft layer beneath the teens and dragons while sunset reflected beautifully in the sky. She couldn't help but smile as she touch the clouds. Hicca saw Astrid smile and remembered the girl that used to be her best friend, the girl she really misses.

"Alright, I admit it. This is pretty cool. It's... _amazing_. _They_ are amazing." Astrid admitted, looking at both Toothless and Midnight. "I'm sorry again for how I was acting before." She opened her mouth to say more, but then she hesitated. Instead, she asked Hiccup a question.

"So, what now? Hiccup, your final exam is tomorrow. You know you're going to have to kill a..." She then whispered in his ear so that Midnight and Toothless wouldn't listen. "...kill a dragon."

This reminded the twins of the upcoming difficulty.

"Don't remind me." Hiccup muttered.

"We honestly don't know what to do. There's no way Hiccup is going to go through with that." Hicca sighed.

The three of them were too busy the problem, that none of them noticed Toothless and Midnights' ears perked up as if they heard something from a distance.

Without any warning, the two dragons suddenly turned to another direction much to the teens' surprise.


	13. The Dragons' Nest

**A/N: In response to a question in the reviews. A couple for Hicca? I haven't really planned anything like that yet. Maybe in the future I might have a love interest for her but for now it not guarantee she will have one. If I do make one for her, it definitely won't be Fishlegs or Tuffnut and Snotlout is her cousin so that's a definite no. And it's also not going to be Dagger. Now onto the story. Enjoy! Sorry if it's a bit short. Please read and review.**

**Disclaimer: I do not own How to train your dragon.**

**Chapter 13: The Dragons' Nest**

"Toothless, what's happening? Whoa, what is it?"

"Midnight, where are you two going?"

The three of them then looked up and saw other dragons flying alongside them. The dragons noticed the teens on the two Night Furies, but did nothing as they continued on their path. "Get down!" Hiccup whispered and they ducked, avoiding the dragons flying above them.

"What's going on?" Astrid asked.

"I don't know. Toothless. You and Midnight have got to get us out of here, bud." Hiccup pleaded, not liking where this is going.

"Midnight come on! Both of you turn back." Hicca whispered, pulling on Midnights' saddle.

The two dragons, however, ignored him and continued on their path. "It looks like they're hauling in their kill." Hiccup noted as he saw the other dragons fly by.

"Uh, what does that make us?" Astrid asked nervously.

"Don't worry. We'll be fine. Toothless and Midnight will not let that happen to us." Hicca said confidently.

The reached an island with a huge mountain in the centre. They followed the other dragons towards a passageway. After seeing millions of dragons gather there, it then dawned on the three of them where they were.

"Is this what I think it is?" Hicca asked her eyes wide.

"What our dad wouldn't give to find this." Hiccup commented in disbelief.

Toothless and Midnight quickly took the teens on a ledge where they then watched as the other dragons started dropping their food in a seemingly empty pit.

"It's satisfying to know that all of our food has been dumped down a hole." Hiccup said sarcastically.

"They're not eating any of it." Astrid noted.

"That doesn't make any sense. Why would they go through all that trouble to get the food from our village if they are just going to throw it down a hole?" Hicca asked, trying to figure out an explanation.

They continued to watch as a Gronckle suddenly came near the pit, only to regurgitate a tiny fish. A loud roar suddenly shook the mountain as the Gronckle was eaten by a large head that appeared from below!

The three teens froze in shock and fear. They have never even _heard _of anything like that! That's why dragons have been raiding them all this time. For them it's actually kill or be killed.

"What is that?" Astrid whispered. To say she was terrified now was an understatement.

"That's a monster! We have to leave, right now! Come on, Midnight!" Hicca urged.

"Alright, buddy, we gotta get out of here. Now!" Hiccup told his dragon.

But it was too late as the monster saw the teens and the dragons and went to eat them! Luckily Toothless and Midnight flew out of there just in time, flying through the opening above. The monster nearly got Midnight by the tailfin, if it hadn't been for an unfortunate Zippleback that flew in its' path. The Zippleback was then dragged to the ground where it disappeared, much to Hiccas' horror as she looked back.

"No, it totally makes sense. It's like a giant beehive. They're the workers, and that's their queen. It controls them." Astrid said, putting two and two together. As soon as they landed back in the Cove, Astrid jumped off Toothless and started running towards the village. "Come on, guys! Let's find your dad." Astrid called out.

"No!" Hiccup and Hicca shouted.

"No! Not yet. They'll... kill Toothless and Midnight. Astrid, we have to think this through carefully." Hiccup explained.

"As soon as they find out we befriended Night Furies, they're not going to listen to anything else." Hicca added.

"Hiccup, Hicca, we just discovered the Dragons' Nest. The thing we've been after since Vikings first sailed here. And you two want to keep it a secret?! To protect your pet dragons?! Are you guys serious?!" Astrid asked in disbelief.

The twins looked her in the eyes and answered in a firm voice "Yes." This caught Astrid completely off guard. She was not expecting this at all. Here where the two runts of the village, both strongly standing up to her to protect the ones they care about. They didn't even stutter or hesitate. She could see the determination in both of them. She couldn't help but feel proud of them. Looks like befriending dragons has helped them a lot.

"Okay. Then what do we do?" She asked. Hicca turned to her brother, hoping he would have an answer.

Thinking about it, Hiccup spoke up "Just give me until tomorrow. I'll figure something out." He said.

"Okay." Astrid then punched him on his shoulder. "That's for kidnapping me." Rubbing his shoulder, Hiccup turned to Toothless who was drinking water by the pond with his mate. Now that the dragons know that Astrid is not a threat, Hiccup is on his own. Then, to Hiccups' surprise, Astrid gave him a quick kiss on the cheek. "That's for... everything else." She said shyly before running off.

Dazed by the kiss, Hiccup turned to see that Toothless and Midnight came over to him and were now staring at him. "W-what are you two looking at?" He stuttered. He then noticed his sister has gone quiet. "Hicca, are you okay?" He asked. Midnight crooned at her rider, also concerned.

Hicca turned to her brother "Midnight and I nearly got eaten by that monster, Hiccup. I mean if that Zippleback didn't fly in its' path then..." She shuddered at the thought. Hiccup then went to comfort her.

"Hey sis, don't worry. You're both safe now. We won't be going back there any time soon. Okay?"

Taking a deep, shaky breath, Hicca managed a smile "Okay." She then remembered something "We've been making _'outfits'_ bro? Seriously?"

Hiccup looked sheepish "Hey, I panicked okay? You know how intimidating she can get."

"This is why I'm a better liar than you."

"Oh, really? Then why didn't you come up with a better lie when we needed it? Hmmm?"


	14. The Final Exam

**Disclaimer: I do not own How to train your dragon**

**Chapter 14: The Final Exam**

The day Hiccup, Hicca and Astrid dreaded came. It was the day of Hiccups' Final Exam where he will have to kill a dragon in front of the entire village. Everyone was gathered at the Arena, cheering and shouting Hiccups' name as Stoick gave his speech.

"Well, I can show my face in public again! If someone had told me that in just few short weeks, Hiccup and Hicca would go from being, well... Hiccup and Hicca, to two of the best in Dragon Training... Well, I would've tied him to a mast and shipped him off for fear he'd gone mad. Yes! And you know it! But here we are. And no one's more surprised or more proud than I am. Today, my boy becomes a Viking. TODAY, HE BECOMES ONE OF US!" He yelled in joy as the crowd continued to cheer.

Inside the Arena near the gate, Hicca and Hiccup were listening to the speech, the latter growing more and more nervous as he heard the speech. How is their dad going to feel when he finds out the truth?

Sensing her brothers' distress, Hicca turned to him "It's going to be okay Hiccup. Dad always tells us that sometimes a chief needs to make hard choices that people may not agree on based on what he believes in."

"Be careful with that dragon." Astrid advised Hiccup as she came from behind, holding her axe.

"It's not the dragon I'm worried about." Hiccup said, watching Stoick take his seat.

"What are you gonna do?" Astrid asked.

"Put an end to this. I have to try" Hiccup said.

"It's the only option right now." Hicca said sadly.

"Hicca, Astrid, if something goes wrong... just make sure they don't find Toothless and Midnight."

"Of course Hiccup." Hicca promised.

"We will. Just... promise us it won't go wrong." Astrid said.

Hiccup didn't reply as Gobber came and started walking Hiccup inside the Arena "It's time, Hiccup. Knock him dead." Gobber then went to join Stoick in the stands. Just before the gate shut, Astrid use the tip of the blade of her axe as a wedge between the gate and the floor. "Just in case." Astrid told Hicca, noticing her questioning glance.

As Hiccup entered, the Vikings cheered even louder.

"Show 'em how it's done, my man!" Tuffnut yelled.

"You can do this, Hiccup! Come on!" Raeda cheered.

Hiccup walked towards the weapon rack and picked a shield and a dagger.

"Hrmph. I would've gone for the hammer." Stoick said to Gobber.

Hiccup then stood at the centre of the Arena and called out "I'm ready."

The gates opened and out came a terrifying Monstrous Nightmare who immediately coated itself with flames and roared as it left its' cage. The dragon then climbed out from the ceiling, shooting fire at the other Vikings who managed to dodge them. It then set its' sights on Hiccup. It dropped down from the ceiling and inched closer and closer to Hiccup. Hiccup took a deep breath. It was now or never. He then threw away his shield and his dagger, much to the confusion of everyone except for Hicca and Astrid.

"What is he doing?" Stoick mumbled.

"It's okay. It's okay." Hiccup said, trying to calm down the Monstrous Nightmare. He then took off his helmet and threw it away as well. "I'm not one of them."

This caused the villagers, except for Astrid and Hicca, to gasp in shock. How could he say that?

"Stop the fight." Stoick said, not believing what he was seeing.

"No! I need you all to see this. They're not what we think they are. We don't have to kill them." Hiccup said, reaching his hand towards the dragon. Hicca held her breath. This is it. All he had to do now was show everyone that the Monstrous Nightmare can be tamed.

"I SAID STOP THE FIGHT!" Stoick yelled enraged. He banged his hammer against the rails and just like that, all hope Hiccup had to tame the Monstrous Nightmare had vanished as the dragon started panicking. It went on a rampage, targeting Hiccup. Hiccup screamed and started running for his life, trying desperately to avoid getting burned by the dragon.

Back at the Cove Toothless and Midnights' ears perked up at the sound of Hiccups' voice. Hiccup is in danger! Midnight already flew out of the Cove. If Hiccup is in danger, then his sister might also be. Toothless climbed out of the Cove, sinking his claws deep in the slopes so he won't fall. He finally made it out of the Cove and joined his mate as they both headed towards the village as fast as they could. They have to save their humans.

"Hurry, Astrid! We need to get in there!" Hicca exclaimed as Astrid used her axe to open the gate to create enough space for her and Hicca to slide under. They got in and Hicca ran to her brother to help him while Astrid grabbed a hammer from the weapons' rack and threw it to the dragon, causing it to chase her instead.

Stoick made his way towards the entrance and opened the gate, allowing the teens to escape. "This way!" he shouted. Astrid managed to get out just in time but Hicca and Hiccup weren't so lucky as the Monstrous Nightmare fired near the entrance, preventing either of them from escaping. The dragon then pounce on them, trapping them with its claws. Before it could blast either of them though, two roars filled the Arena as the villagers looked towards the source.

"Night Fury!" Gobber yelled.

Toothless and Midnight flew into the Arena, ignoring the shouts from the other Vikings and attacked the dragon that dared to harm Hiccup and Hicca. They were successful as they got the dragon away from the twins and made it retreat back into the cage. But then there was another problem; the Vikings. Hicca and Hiccup got up and ran to their dragons.

"Alright, Toothless, you and Midnight go. Get out of here!" He begged, trying to push Toothless to go.

"Midnight, please! You guys need to get out of here or you're both going to get captured." Hicca pleaded.

But the two dragons adamantly refused. They couldn't leave their humans behind when there was more danger around them! Many Vikings charged in the Arena and tried to attack the Night Furies, but Midnight and Toothless fought back. Stoick then charged in the Arena towards the dragons.

"Stoick, no!" Astrid shouted. But it was no use. The chief had his mind set on capturing those dragons at all costs.

"No, wait! You don't understand!" Hicca cried.

"Dad, he won't hurt you!" Hiccup shouted. But it was too late. Toothless ran towards him and attacked while Hicca managed to hold Midnight back. After a brief struggle, Toothless had Stoick pinned to the ground, and to the twins horror, was preparing to fire a plasma blast!

"Toothless! STOP!"

"DON'T Toothless, Please!"

"NOOOOO!" The Haddock twins yelled. That stopped Toothless as his pupils dilated. He looked up to the twins in confusion, when he suddenly got tackle by the other Vikings! Midnight gave a roar and rushed to help him, but she too got tackled and muzzled!

Hiccup and Hicca tried to get to their dragons but Astrid held them back, knowing it's only going to make things worse.

Stoick got up and saw the two dragons being tied by the Vikings while his two children were trying to help their enemies. "Put it with the others!" He commanded.

From the stands, Raeda was speechless along with the other teens. She was not expecting any of this to happen at all! 'Is that the same Night Fury they shot down with another one? Is this how they've been getting better in training? Why didn't they tell me?'Raeda thought carefully about what would have happened if they did tell her. Would she have accepted it? After what happened to her family? Taking a closer look at the two Night Furies as they were being pulled away, she became confused. 'Are those saddles and a...prosthetic tailfin?' She then looked back at her two friends and saw how worried they were for the dragons. Her mind then went back to what Hiccup was trying to show them all before the chaos started.

The doors to the Great Hall opened and Hiccup and Hicca were shoved inside.

"I should have known. I should have seen the signs." Stoick ranted, angered by what he saw.

"Dad-" Hiccup tried to explain.

"We had a deal!"

"I know we did... But that was before... Ugh, it's all so messed up." Hiccup said.

"We really didn't want things to end up like this!" Hicca said.

"So everything you two did in the ring. A trick? A lie?"

"We screwed up. We should have told you before now. Take this out on us, be mad at us, but please... just don't hurt Toothless and Midnight."

"Please, just spare them. It wasn't their fault!"

"Those dragon?" Stoick shouted in disbelief "That's what you're both worried about? Not the people you two almost killed?!"

"They were just protecting us! They're not dangerous."

"They attacked because they saw you guys as threats!"

"They've killed HUNDREDS OF US!"

"AND WE'VE KILLED THOUSANDS OF THEM!"

"They are being held against their will! They have no choice but to raid our village for food!"

"Hicca's right. They defend themselves, that's all! They raid us because they have to! If they don't bring enough food back, they'll be eaten themselves. There's something else on their island, Dad... it's a dragon like-"

"More like a monster!"

"Their island?" Stoick asked causing the twins to freeze. "So you two have been to the nest."

"Did I say nest?" Hiccup asked nervously.

"How did you two find it?!" Stoick demanded.

"No... We didn't. _Toothless and Midnight_ did. Only a dragon can find the island."

"Yeah, it's some kind of hypnotic sound or something that pulls them towards the island. Oh, no." Hicca said, putting her hands to her mouth as she and her brother saw the look in their fathers' eyes. They knew what he was planning to do.

"Oh, no, no. Dad, no! Dad. It's not what you think!" Hiccup said desperately as Stoick moved towards the door.

"Dad, please! We saw this thing ourselves! It will destroy you and the other warriors in one blast!" Hicca warned, getting in front of her father to try and stop him.

"It's like nothing you've ever seen! Dad, please. Hicca and I promise you that you can't win this one! No. Dad, no! FOR _ONCE_ IN YOUR LIFE, WOULD YOU _PLEASE_ JUST LISTEN TO US?!" Hiccup shouted, grabbing on to his fathers' arm. Stoick shook him off, throwing him back. Hicca went to her brother to see if he was okay.

"You two have thrown your lot in with them." Stoick said in a low voice causing them to stop and look at him "You're not Vikings. You're not my children." He slammed the door behind them, leaving the twins speechless as their hearts stopped. What have they done? They have already lost their mother when they were babies and now they've lost their dad. Neither of them knew what to do now. What could they do?

Outside the Great Hall, Stoick stopped and let everything sink in as he realized what he just did. However, he shook it off and walked forward. "READY THE SHIPS!" He shouted. They have a battle to prepare for.


	15. The Plan

**Disclaimer: I do not own How to train your dragon**

**Chapter 15: The Plan**

At the docks, the all the warriors gathered every weapon they have and threw them on the ships. Those who were too young or too old stayed behind. Toothless and Midnight were bound to chains, unable to break free, and were pulled onto one of the ships. Hiccup and Hicca could only helplessly watch from afar at the preparations. They couldn't do anything now. They have already done enough.

"Set sail! We head for Helheim's Gate." Stoick ordered. He looked up and saw Hicca and Hiccup looking at him, their faces were expressionless. There was a small part of him that said to go them and fix their broken relationship but he shook it off and walked towards the front of the ship. Hiccup even said it himself, he wasn't one of them and neither was Hicca. He stopped where Midnight and Toothless were and leaned towards them. "Lead us home, Devils." He said in a low voice glaring at them which they returned.

The Haddock twins watched as the ships disappeared, desperately wanting to stop them but couldn't. They knew they would only make it worse. They stayed there even after the ships were long gone and Astrid joined them.

"It's a mess. You two must feel horrible. Both of you have lost everything. Your father, your tribe, your best dragon friends..." Astrid stated.

That barely helped "Thank you for summing that up." Hiccup dead-panned.

"Yeah, we really appreciate that." Hicca muttered sarcastically. This was not what either of them needed to hear at all.

"Why couldn't I have killed that dragon when Hicca and I found him in the woods? It would have been better for everyone." Hiccup said sadly, remembering that day in the forest. This was all his fault. He started this whole thing because of his false desire to kill a dragon and he dragged his sister and now Astrid into this mess. He was even the one who blurted out their discovery of the Nest causing this suicide mission to happen.

Astrid then spoke up "Yep. The rest of us would have done it. So why didn't you?" She asked Hiccup. She then turned to Hicca "What about you Hicca? When you're brother couldn't have killed him, why didn't you?"

Hicca took a deep breath and answered "Because I knew it wasn't who I am. I don't want to be a dragon slayer, I actually want to be a..." She took another deep breath "...a healer. And seeing Toothless in the forest that day confirmed that."

Astrid raised her eyebrows in surprise "A healer?"

"Yeah, I have that passion ever since I was eleven. I wanted to save lives, not take them away. Now, it looks like all hope for that ever becoming a reality is gone." Hicca admitted, looking out towards the ocean.

Not wanting to push the subject further, Astrid turned to Hiccup "And what about you? Why didn't you?"

"I don't know. I couldn't." Hiccup said, not looking at her.

"That's not an answer."Astrid stated.

Hiccup started getting annoyed "Why is this so important to you all of a sudden?!"

"Because I want to remember what you say, _right now_." Astrid answered calmly.

"Oh, for the love of- I was a coward! I was weak. I _wouldn't_ kill a dragon!"

"You said _"wouldn't"_ that time." Astrid pointed out.

"Whatever! I wouldn't! Three hundred years, and I'm the first Viking who _wouldn't_ kill a dragon!" Hiccup ranted, turning his back to the girls. He just felt hopeless now.

"Not the first, bro." Hicca reminded him. She knew she wouldn't kill dragons long before she and her brother met Toothless and Midnight.

"You two were the first to ride ones, though." That brought the twins out of their depressions as they remembered all the discoveries they made in the past month and the fact that they managed to restore a dragons' flight. They wouldn't have achieved those things if they weren't so different from everyone. "So...?"

"...I wouldn't kill him because he looked as frightened as _I_ was. I looked at him, and I saw myself." Hiccup answered, looking at Astrid. The three of them then stared out at the direction that the ships went. "I bet he and Midnight are really frightened now. What are you two going to do about it?" Astrid asked.

Hiccup shrugged. "Eh, probably something stupid."

"Wouldn't be our first time." Hicca commented.

"Good. But you've already done that." Astrid said.

An idea then came to the twins mind. One glance exchanged, they knew they have the same plan in mind.

"Then something crazy!" Hiccup said.

"We need to get to the Arena!" Hicca said and the twins ran off.

"_That's_ more like it!" Astrid said watching the two run off. There were the Haddock twins she knew and love. She then went to join them.

"Sound your positions. Stay within earshot." Stoick ordered.

"Here."

"One length to your stern."

"On your starboard flank."

"Three widths to port."

"Ahead, at your bow."

"Haven't a clue."

Gobber then approached Stoick nervously "Listen... Stoick... I was overhearing some of the men just now and, well, some of them are wondering what it is we're up to here- not me of course, I know you're always the man with the plan- but some, not me, are wondering if there is in fact a plan at all, what it might be?"

"Find the nest and take it." Stoick said with a cold expression. He was determined to get rid of every last one of them. To make them pay for brainwashing Hiccup and Hicca to take their side. They have taken away his wife and turned his children against him and now he will get his revenge.

"Ah. Of course. Send them running. The old Viking fallback. Nice and simple." Gobber muttered, not feeling reassured at all. Movements from Toothless and Midnight caught Stoicks' attention. "Shhh." He observed the two dragons for second before moving to the back of the ship. He grabbed the rudder and observe the two Night Furies. Toothless and Midnight, on instinct, turned their heads left, making Stoick steer the boat left as well. He started following directions based on where the dragons turned their heads to get to the Nest.

"Bear to port." One of the Vikings called out.

Back in the Arena on Berk, Hicca and Hiccup were about to open one of the cages when a familiar voice made them turn around.

"If you're planning on getting eaten, I'd definitely go with the Gronckle." Fishlegs advised.

In front of the Haddock twins was not only Astrid but also Fishlegs, Raeda, Snotlout, Ruffnut and Tuffnut.

Raeda walked towards the two and they were suddenly feeling nervous. She now knows the truth, what is she going to say to them?

"Night Furies...You guys befriended _Night Furies_. Unbelievable." She said.

"Look, Rae. We're so sorry. We really didn't want to lie to you and it wasn't easy for us to do so. We just-." Hicca tried to explain but was then cut off by Raeda.

"Those were two of the most feared and deadly dragons known to Vikings. They could have been anywhere they wanted to be, yet they willingly chose to come to a place filled with armed Vikings...just to protect you two. One of them even had the _perfect_ chance to kill the chief. But it didn't because you guys told him not to." Raeda commented thoughtfully.

The Haddock twins were surprised by her reaction. This was definitely not what they were expecting.

"Wait, so you're _not_ mad at us?" Hiccup asked unsure.

"Well, to be honest I'm more shock than mad but as far as I know, those two dragons saved your lives and we need to return the favour. Astrid said you guys have a plan and we're in." Raeda said, referring to herself and the other teens.

Hicca and Hiccup smiled in relief. They still have their best human friend.

Tuffnut then decided to cut in. "You two were wise to seek help from the world's most deadly weapon." He said, pushing Raeda aside. Noticing the Haddock twins confused expressions he then added "It's me."

"I _love_ this plan!" Snotlout said enthusiastically, pushing Tuffnut aside. They didn't even say what the plan was.

"We didn't..." Hiccup started to say before Ruffnut cut in.

"You two are crazy!" She then leaned towards Hiccup and whispered. "I like that." Much to the poor boys' discomfort.

To his relief, Astrid pulled Ruffnut aside by her helmet. "So? What _is_ the plan?" She asked

"Knowing you two, it's going to be something epic." Raeda said, smiling.

**A/N: Do you think I made Raeda a bit too forgiving and understanding? I was kind of having doubts about it. Send me your feedback and let me know.**


	16. The Final Battle Part 1

**Disclaimer: I do not own How to train your dragon.**

**Chapter 16: The Final Battle Part 1**

Back to the Viking warriors, the ships were getting closer and closer to the Nest as it passed a wrecked ship.

"Ah. I was wondering where that went." Gobber commented.

"Stay low and ready your weapons." Stoick ordered, as they nearly reached the island. Once they got there, the chief was the first to jump off and survey the land. "We're here."

At the Arena the teens, besides Astrid and Hicca, watched in awe as Hiccup guided the now calm Monstrous Nightmare out of its' cage with his hand near the dragons' snout. Snotlout, however, was feeling a bit uneasy as he slowly began to pick up a broken spear from the ground. Luckily, Astrid caught him in time.

"Uh-uh." She said, hitting him on the shoulder. Reluctantly, he dropped it.

Hiccup then brought the dragon closer to Snotlout and took the Jorgenson boys' hand. Snotlout started to panic. "Wait! What are you...?!"

"Relax. It's okay... it's okay." Hiccup said.

"Don't panic, Snotlout. You show the dragon you trust it, it will trust you in return." Hicca advised.

Hiccup slowly moved Snotlouts' hand towards the snout of the dragon, causing it to purr in content much to Snotlouts' amazement and relief. However, he started to get worried again when Hiccup moved away from him. "Where are you going?!"

"You're going to need something to help you hold on." Hiccup said holding up some rope.

"Trust us. This is from experience." Hicca added. The teens turned around and saw that the Haddock girl had opened the rest of the cages that contained the two Deadly Nadders, the Gronckle and the Hideous Zippleback.

"When we crack this mountain open, all hell is going to break loose." Stoick said as they devised a strategy.

"In my undies. Good thing I brought extras". Gobber said.

Stoick ignored that and continued "No matter how this ends, it ends today."

Stoick then raised his right arm and gave the signal. At that signal, the Vikings used one of the catapults to launch a boulder at the mountains, creating an entrance. Stoick then approached the entrance, while the others stayed in their positions. The Vikings then fired a flaming boulder into the entrance, revealing thousands of dragons hidden in the cave. Stoick gave a battle roar and charged into the mountains. The dragons, seeing the newly-formed opening, immediately flew out. The warriors raised their weapons high and prepared to fight. But to their surprise, none of the dragons fought back. All the dragons just flew passed them and away from the island.

"Is that it?" Gobber wondered. He then shrugged and turned to the other warriors.

"We've done it!" Spitelout yelled. The other warriors cheered. They were victorious.

Stoick, however, felt a little unsettled. That was too easy. These dragons raided their village every night and were relentless in getting their prey. Yet when the Vikings came to their home, the dragons flee without a fight. Stoick then looked at where Toothless and Midnight were and saw that they were backing away in fear. Seeing that, Stoick knew something was wrong. "This isn't over. Form your ranks! Hold together!"

The other warriors stopped their celebration and went back to their positions. Suddenly, a thunderous roar was heard, alarming the warriors as they never heard anything like it.

"Get clear!" Stoick yelled as he moved away from the entrance.

The entrance of the mountain started to break further apart as the same gigantic dragon that Hiccup, Hicca and Astrid have seen came out and into view.

"Beard of Thor... what is that?" Gobber shouted, looking at the size of the dragon.

"Odin, help us." Stoick muttered. "Catapults!" he then shouted, hoping it will have some effect.

But that hope was lost when the boulders launched didn't even scratch the enormous dragon. The dragon blasted fire at the catapults in retaliation.

"Get to the ships!" One of the Vikings shouted.

But Stoick knew that it wasn't a good idea "No! NO!

He was right as the dragon then blasted at the ships preventing anyone from leaving the island. "Heh. Smart, that one." Gobber commented.

"I was a fool." Stoick said looking down. His mind went back on what Hiccup and Hicca were trying to tell him. Of course, they were talking about this dragon. They've been here, they obviously saw that thing. They were trying to warn him even after everything he put them through. He led his warriors to a suicide mission and now they were all going to die. Guilt and shame overtook him. He needed to do something.

He turned to Spitelout "Lead the men to the far side of the island."

Spitelout nodded "Right. Everybody to the far side of the island!"

"Gobber, go with the men." Stoick ordered.

"I think I'll stay, just in case you're thinking of doing something crazy." Gobber said, knowing his friend.  
>Stoick turned to Gobber "I can buy them a few minutes if I give that thing someone to hunt."<p>

Before Stoick could run off, Gobber grabbed his hand "Then I can double that time." He said.

Stoick nodded in understanding and then called to the beast "HERE!"

"NO, HERE!" Gobber shouted and both of them ran off towards the monster.

Stoick grabbed one of the sharp wooden stakes jutting from the ground and threw it at the beast to get its' attention "Come on! Bite me!" Gobber shouted.

"No, me!" Stoick yelled.

Before the enormous dragon could decide which to eat first, suddenly a blast came from the left side of its' head.

"Ruff, Tuff, watch your backs! Move, Fishlegs!" A voice called out making Stoick stop and look up. He'd recognised that voice anywhere. To his and the other warriors complete shock, the eight teens were flying on the five dragons from the Arena.

Hiccup, Astrid and Hicca were ahead of the group on the blue Deadly Nadder with Hiccup steering, Raeda was right behind them on the purple Deadly Nadder, Snotlout was behind Raeda on the Monstrous Nightmare, while Fishlegs was on the Gronckle. This left the Thorston twins on the Hideous Zippleback with Ruffnut on the left head and Tuffnut on the right head.

"LOOK AT US! WE'RE ON A DRAGON! WE'RE ON DRAGONS! ALL OF US!" Tuffnut called out to the stunned Vikings below them.

"Up, let's move it!" Hiccup shouted and the others followed.

"Every bit the boar-headed, stubborn Viking you ever were!" Gobber commented to Stoick. Stoick only nodded, completely speechless. Even after he ignored them and disowned them, Hiccup and Hicca were coming to his rescue. What's more shocking is that they came on the backs of dragon with Hiccup giving out orders like a true leader should.

"Fishlegs, break it down!" Hiccup ordered as the eight if them and their dragons flew in a circle.

"Okay! Heavily armoured skull and tail made for bashing and crushing! Steer clear of both! Small eyes, large nostrils! Relies on hearing and smell!" Fishlegs noted, observing the beast.

"Okay! Lout, Legs, hang in its blind spot! Make some noise, keep it confused! Rae, find out if it has a weak spot! Ruff, Tuff, find out if it has a shot limit! Make it mad!" Hiccup ordered, to the Thorston twins delight.

"That's my specialty!" Ruffnut said happily.

Tuffnut did not agree with that "Since when? Everyone knows _I'm_ more irritating! See?" To prove his point, Tuffnut dangled upside down from the Zipplebacks' neck making annoying sounds.

"Just do what I told you! We'll be back as soon as we can!" Hiccup commanded before he steered the Nadder away from the group.

"Good luck, guys!" Hicca called out as Astrid gave them a salute.

"Don't worry, we got it covered!" Snotlout shouted.

"Let's go guys!" Raeda yelled and the five teens went to their positions.

Ruffnut and Tuffnut flew the Zippleback right in front of the monstrous' dragons' large face and started shouting insults at it as they flew by.

"Troll!"

"Butt-Elf!"

"Bride of Grendel!"

The huge dragon fired a blast at the Thorston twins, which they managed to dodge in time.

Raeda guided the purple Nadder on the right side of the monsters' neck. "Okay, let's see if the weak spot is on its' neck." She fired an arrow which bounced off of the dragons' skin.

"Nope." She said before avoiding another blast.

Near the head of the dragon, Fishlegs and Snotlout were on either side of the dragons head. Noticing the small eyes looking at him, Fishlegs started getting a little nervous "Uh, this thing doesn't have a blind spot! "

Meanwhile, Hicca, Hiccup and Astrid flew above the burning boat, desperately searching for Midnight and Toothless.

"There!" Hiccup said, pointing to one of the boats. He took the Nadder towards the boat and along with his sister, jumped off the dragon and onto the burning boat.

"Go help the others!" Hiccup told Astrid.

"Be careful." Hicca called out

Reluctantly, Astrid guided the Nadder away from the burning boat.

"Hey guys. Don't worry. We're going to get you two out of there." Hicca said to the two Night Furies.

"Okay, hold on. Hold on." The twins took of the muzzles and started working on prying the chains open.

Back at the head of the dragon, Snotlout and Fishlegs were banging their hammers against their shields and it look liked it had the desired effects.

"Yeah! It's working!" Fishlegs yelled.

Unfortunately for Fishlegs and Snotlout, their plan was working too well that it started affecting the Gronckle and the Monstrous Nightmare. This caused Snotlout to be thrown of his dragon and onto the beasts' head!

"I've lost power on the Gronckle. SNOTLOUT! DO SOMETHING!" Fishlegs yelled throwing his hammer to Snotlout, who caught it, just before he and the Gronckle fell.

"I'm okay!" Fishlegs shouted as they hit the ground. But he spoke too soon as the Gronckle then rolled on top of him. "Less okay..."

Fishlegs then tried get out from under his dragon and scurry away to avoided getting stomped on by the large dragon.

"I can't miss!" Snotlout, who was still on the dragons' head, exclaimed. He then started hitting the monster in the eyes with the hammer Fishlegs threw to him. "What's wrong buddy, got something in your eye?"

"Yeah! You're the Viking!" Astrid yelled as she flew by with the blue Nadder.

That got Snotlout distracted for a second as the beast then roared and threw him in the air. He dropped his hammer, but he still managed to hang on the horns on the beasts' head "Whoa!" He said as he watched the hammer fall a great height towards the ground.

Back on the boat, the Haddock twins were still trying to break the chains loose, but were unsuccessful. Suddenly the monsters' tail smashed the boat, causing the twins and the two dragons to fall into the ocean. Since Toothless and Midnight were still chained up and unable to move, they were sinking. Hiccup and Hicca swam towards them and desperately tried to pull on the chains, but it was no use. The twins started to lose consciousness when two hands suddenly grabbed them and pulled them out of the water. Above water, Stoick gasped for air as he pulled both of his former children back to shore. On shore, the twins regained enough consciousness to see Stoick dive back in the ocean.

"Dad?"

"What?"

Stoick swam towards Midnight and Toothless causing the two dragons to open their eyes to see the chief. After staring for a second, the chief broke the chains, setting the two Night Furies free. The dragons then shot out of the water, with Toothless carrying Stoick out by his claws. The dragons shook off the water and gestured to the gigantic dragon. It was clear what they were trying to say.

"You got it, bud." Hiccup said.

"Let's do this." Hicca agreed, despite her earlier fears.

They got on the saddles and were getting ready to go, when Stoick stopped both of them "Hiccup. Hicca, I'm sorry... for- for everything."

"Yeah, so are we." Hiccup replied.

"We never should have lied to you." Hicca said.

"You two don't have to go up there." Stoick said. He really didn't want them to go. He didn't want them to pay for his mistake.

"We're Vikings. It's an occupational hazard." The twins said in unison.

Recognizing his own words, Stoick simply said "I'm proud to call you two my children."

The twins' faces lit up from hearing this. That was all they ever wanted to hear him say "Thanks, Dad."

With renewed hope, they then flew high in the sky. Stoick watched them, feeling pride for his children and worried for their lives.


	17. The Final Battle Part 2

**A/N: Getting close to the end now. Also got a new cover photo for this story :) When this story is over I will be doing Riders and Defenders of Berk and in the future How to train your dragon 2. Please read and review.**

**Disclaimer: I do not own How to train your dragon.**

**Chapter 17: The Final Battle Part 2**

"They're up!" Astrid shouted as soon as she saw two familiar dragons soar high in the sky.

"That's our cue to evacuate." Raeda said, although she felt a bit uneasy about this part of the plan.

"Get Snotlout out of there!" Astrid ordered the Thorston twins.

"I'm on it!" They both said in unison.

Then to the poor Zipplebacks' dismay, their riders started arguing on who would rescue Snotlout even though they were on the same dragon

"I'm on it first! I'm ahead of you" Tuffnut said, shoving his sister.

"Hey! Let me drive!" Ruffnut retorted, shoving back.

Snotlout saw the Zippleback coming and started running towards it. He jumped and was caught in between the necks of the Zippleback.

"I can't believe that worked!" Snotlout shouted, relieved that it did. He, Ruffnut, Tuffnut and Raeda flew safely away from the massive dragon. Astrid, however, wasn't so lucky as the gigantic monster started sucking her and the blue Nadder into its' mouth. It looked like it was going to be the end for Astrid and the Nadder when two dragons suddenly swooped in.

"Night Furies!" A Viking shouted.

"Get down!" Gobber yelled.

Before the monster could eat Astrid and the Nadder, two plasma blasts came out of nowhere and hit its' face. The impact of the blasts caused Astrid to fall off her dragon towards the ground. Fortunately for her, she was saved by one of the Night Furies that caught her by her foot.

"Did you get her?" Hiccup asked Toothless. Toothless looked down at Astrid and gave her a gummy smile, which she returned.

"He got her, bro. Looks like we came just in time." Hicca said as she and Midnight flew alongside them. Toothless then tossed Astrid to grab her shoulders before taking her to the ground. As soon as she was placed on the ground, she watched as the two teens and two dragons flew off to face the monster. "Go." She whispered.

"You ready, sis?" Hiccup asked her.

"Let's put an end to this once and for all." Hicca answered with determination.

As they flew towards the vast dragons, Hiccup noticed the wings and got an idea. "That thing has wings! Okay guys; let's see if it can use them!"

"Let's do this!" Hicca shouted.

Midnight and Toothless flew towards the beast at rapid speed, firing a plasma blast each at its' face.

"Do you think that did it?" Hiccup asked.

"Does that answer your question?" Hicca replied, gesturing to the beast as it started to spread its' wings and fly, chasing after them.

"Well, he can fly."

Everyone else watched in awe as the Haddock twins and the two Night Furies flew across with breakneck speed. Their awe quickly turned into worry as they watched the beast fly after them, destroying numerous sea stacks in its' way.

Hicca then looked up at the clouds and got an idea.

"Hiccup!" She called to her brother. When she got his attention, she jerked her head upwards to the clouds. Understanding what his sister was trying to tell him, Hiccup turned to Toothless "Okay, Toothless, time to disappear."

"Come on, Midnight. We need camouflage." Hicca told her dragon.

The two dragons then flew upwards towards the clouds, with the beast chasing after it. The massive dragon then shot flames at them, which they managed to avoid in time. It stopped as it realised that the two dragons and two humans were nowhere to be seen. Because of their dark scales, Toothless and Midnight easily blended in with the clouds, making it difficult for the massive dragon to find them. This gave the four of them a significant advantage as they fired plasma blast after plasma blast towards the beasts' wings. Fed up, the large dragon started firing everywhere in the clouds. Midnight and Hicca managed to avoid it but unfortunately for Toothless and Hiccup, the formers' prosthetic tailfin caught fire.

"Oh no!" Hicca shouted, alerting her brother to the flaming tailfin.

"Okay, time's up! Let's see if this works."

Understanding what he meant, Hicca guided Midnight to fly alongside Toothless as they flew downwards.

"COME ON! IS THAT THE BEST YOU CAN DO?!" Hiccup yelled, taunting the beast

"THAT IS COMPLETELY PATHETIC!" Hicca hollered.

That did the trick as the beast started chasing them again. As they flew downwards the twins could feel the monster getting closer and closer to them. It opened its' mouth, getting ready to blast them, but the twins continued on their path

"Stay with me, buddy. We're good. Just a little bit longer." Hiccup encouraged.

"Hang in there, Midnight. We're nearly there." Hicca told her dragon.

"Hold, Midnight."

"Hold, Toothless."

When the twins heard a hissing sound from the beast, they knew it was time. "NOW!"

In a second, Midnight and Toothless spun backwards and shot one plasma blast each into the dragons' mouth, causing it to catch fire inside its' body. It tried to spread its' wings, but it was no use because of the holes made from the previous plasma blasts.

Toothless and Midnight flew their riders away from its' mouth and upwards as the enormous dragon pummelled to its' death. It hit the ground causing a huge explosion. The monster was killed and all the dragons were finally free from its' control. But it wasn't over as the Haddock twins and the Night Furies still had to get away from the inferno caused by the explosion. Hicca and Midnight flew ahead while Hiccup and Toothless were doing their best to keep up. But that task proved to be difficult for the boys as Toothless' burnt prosthetic tail was now gone. Suddenly the beasts' large, bludgeon like tail became another obstacle for the four of them.

"WATCH OUT!" Hicca screamed as she and Midnight narrowly avoided getting hit by the tail.

Because the prosthetic tailfin is now gone, there was no way Hiccup and Toothless could avoid the bludgeon-like tail. "No." Hiccup said fearfully as the tail came closer. "NO!" Suddenly his vision became black as he was knocked out cold off the saddle and into the inferno. Toothless spun around and after seeing Hiccup fall into the fire, he gave a roar and used all the strength he had to dive in after him. There was no way he was going to let his rider die. Not after everything they've been through with Hicca and Midnight.

"HICCUP!" Hicca cried out as she watched her brother fall, with Toothless flying after him. She urged Midnight to go after them, but the dragon adamantly refused. She knew that although it wouldn't be a problem for her because she's fireproof, her rider wasn't and she wanted to protect her from getting burned. She was as worried about Hiccup as his sister was but she had faith that her mate will be able to rescue him in time. He has to.

As soon as the smoke cleared, Stoick started looking for his children. "Hicca?! Hiccup?!"

He then saw a dark dragon landing to the ground with a human getting off the saddle. He immediately recognised the figure.

"Hicca!" He yelled, running to her as fast as he could.

Hicca turned around and a second later she was lifted into a hug from her father. Stoick was so grateful to see her alive and held on to her, afraid that if he let go then she would disappear.

"Oh, Hicca! I'm so glad you are okay. Where's Hiccup?" The question Hicca dreaded came as she looked at the ground. "Hicca?" Stoick asked fearfully, wondering why she wasn't answering.

"It came out of nowhere." Hicca whispered.

"What?" Stoick asked, confused.

"The tail. It was a gigantic bludgeon and it came out of nowhere! Midnight and I managed to avoid it but Hiccup and Toothless..." She couldn't finish that sentence and she didn't have to. It became clear to Stoick and the others what happened. The feeling of dread then came back to Stoick. 'No! It couldn't be! Could it?'

"They have to be around here somewhere. We have to keep looking!" Stoick said, trying to hold back his tears. He kept his daughter close by as he continued to look for his son.

"Hiccup? Hiccup! Son!" He then saw a figure lying down in the distance and his heart skipped a beat. "Hiccup." Stoick whispered as he ran towards the figure with Hicca following.

As they got closer it became clear that the figure was an unconscious-

"Toothless." Hicca whispered. But where was her brother? She and her dad saw that the saddle and the prosthetic tailfin were completely burnt. They both came to the same conclusion.

Hicca didn't bother hiding her tears as she started crying, turning away from Toothless. Her brother is dead! He's gone forever. She didn't know what to do anymore, she couldn't even think straight. How was she going to carry on her life without him by her side? Everything felt completely foreign to her now without him.

"Oh, son... I did this..." Stoick whispered as he got on his knees. His heart broke as he saw Hicca crying. He knew he was responsible for this. 'FOR _ONCE_ IN YOUR LIFE, WOULD YOU _PLEASE_ JUST LISTEN TO US?!' That voice echoed in his head as he closed his eyes. Why didn't he ever listen to either of them? They were his children, he should have listened to them and instead he ignored them. He wished he could take it back now but he knew it was too late. He was grateful, thought, that at least he got a chance to make amends with Hiccup before he died.

Behind Stoick and Hicca, the other villagers bowed their heads down at the fallen hero. Those who mistreated Hiccup and his sister were consumed with guilt, wishing they could undo what they did. Astrid and Gobber pushed through the crowd but stopped when they saw the chief with his head down and Hicca crying.

'No.' Astrid thought. 'This cannot be happening. Hiccup can't be dead. I didn't get to make amends with him properly. Why, oh why did I ever turn against those two? I never should have done that! What was I thinking? They were my friends!" Her eyes started filling up with tears.

Raeda was also crying. That was one of her best friends. One of the first to accept the real her and understand her. Hiccup was like a brother to her and she couldn't imagine not seeing him always with his sister drawing or working on a new invention or making sarcastic comments.

Toothless started coming back into consciousness and saw the mourning Vikings. Stoick decided to apologise to the dragon as well "I'm so sorry...Both of you. I'm so sorry." He whispered not only to Toothless but also to Midnight. Realising that they were grieving over Hiccup, Toothless started to unwrap his wings which were previously wrapped firmly around him. Under his wings was...Hiccup!

"Hiccup!" Stoick shouted, causing Hicca to turn around. Could it be?

Stoick brought his son in his arms and took off his helmet to check for a heartbeat. "He's alive! You brought him back alive!" He announced.

The Vikings started cheering and were joined by some of the dragons who came back. Hicca started crying again but this time it was tears of joy. Midnight came to her mate and nuzzled him while Stoick held Hiccups' head with one hand and gently put his other hand on Toothless.

"Thank you... for saving my son." Stoick said. He would be forever in debt to that dragon.

Gobber then approached them and took a look at Hiccup "Well, you know... _most_ of him."


	18. The Aftermath

**Disclaimer: I do not own How to train your dragon**

**Chapter 18: The Aftermath**

As soon as she heard her mentor say that, Hicca immediately got a closer look at her brother and saw what Gobber meant.

"His leg!" Hicca gasped. Hiccups' left leg was such a bad shape that she didn't know if she could call it a leg anymore. It was charred and bleeding and was bent at an odd angle. Gobber tried to move Hicca away from the sight while Stoick took off his fur cape to cover the leg.

"We need a healer." Stoick said.

No one made any movements until Gobber spoke up "Well?! You guys heard the chief! We need the healer fast!" The healer immediately pushed her way through the crowd and held out her hands to take Hiccup. "We're going to need to set up a tent." She said.

"We'll work on that. Just please do what you can to save his leg." Stoick pleaded.

The healer, Gobber and Hicca had uneasy looks. They knew that the leg can't be salvaged and that there was only one thing they could do. Stoick noticed the looks. "What is it?" he asked.

The healer seemed a bit hesitant in answering his question so Hicca answered. "The leg can't be saved, dad. It's way beyond repair. There's no other choice but to amputate it otherwise it could get infected which will make things worse for Hiccup than it already is. Plus the amputation is the only thing that will stop him from bleeding to death" Hicca explained. She did not want this to happen to her brother but she knew that it had to be done.

This stunned Stoick and the healer. "She's right." The healer said. Stoick wanted to ask Hicca how she knew that, but then her words registered in his mind. His son was going to lose a leg. He's only fifteen; he's way too young for an amputation. Yet here he is, going to go through a world of pain. Stoick could never forgive himself for this. "Do what you have to do." Stoick said solemnly, handing Hiccup over to the healer.

She nodded and took Hiccup. Spitelout then approached the chief "Chief. There are some Vikings who got injuries or burns from the battle and they need to be treated right away." He said. Some of the injured Vikings from the crowd nodded in agreement.

"Is there any other healer here?" Stoick asked. Everyone shook their heads no. This put Stoick in a dilemma. There were a lot of Vikings with serious injuries and the only healer available is tending to Hiccup, preparing for an amputation. What was he going to do?

"I can help." A voice said, making everyone turn to the source. Hicca came up, holding her satchel. "I can help treat their wounds." She said nervously. How were they going to react?

Everyone, except Gobber and Raeda looked, looked at her doubtfully. Yes, it is true they witness her and her brother took down a dragon the size of an island when no one else could, but this is different. Could they trust a fifteen year old to treat their wounds properly?

Noticing the doubtful looks, Hicca spoke up "I know all the steps in treating wounds and burns. Gothi taught them to me, I have them all memorised. And here." She took off her satchel and emptied the contents, revealing a notebook, a charcoal, a medical guide book and a first aid kit. "I came well-prepared, though I know you guys have packed more medical supplies.

"I think you guys should give her a chance, trust me." Gobber advised.

"Yeah, you guys will surprise at what she can do and how much she knows." Raeda added.

The others still had a little bit of doubt. Stoick then spoke up "Okay, since we don't have other options, I guess you will have to let Hicca tend to your wounds." He then remembered what Hicca had said earlier about her brothers' amputation.

The injured Vikings, though, still seemed a bit hesitant. Gobber then spoke up "Come on! We're Vikings. We've faced through worse before and you guys are here scared of a fifteen year old treating your wounds?"

"It's best you get them treated now as it can be worse later if left untreated." Hicca advised.

Finally, one Viking came forward holding up his singed arm. Hicca then took the burn cream she has with her and started treating the burn. The Vikings eyes grew wide as they watched how easily and professionally she took care of the arm. As soon as she finished, she turned to the crowd. "Next?" she asked.

Seeing how good she is, more injured Vikings stepped forward, shoving each other aside to get the treatment first. "One at a time people, one at a time." Hicca called out. She couldn't help but smile. Finally.

Stoick was the most shocked and amazed at this new discovery. Who knew she was that good?

Gobber noticed Stoicks' expression and nudged him. "Surprised huh?" he said causally.

Stoick turned to Gobber "How long has she been good at this?" He asked.

"Since she was eleven, I think. It's been her passion ever since. I think when you guys get back to Berk; you should have a talk with her." Gobber suggested. Stoick nodded. There were many things he needed to talk with her and Hiccup about.

Remembering his son, Stoick made his way towards the healers' hut, which has been set up by the non-injured Vikings. Hicca saw where her dad was going and called to Astrid. "Hey, Astrid. Can you come here for a second?"

Astrid immediately walked to Hicca. "Do you mind going to the healers hut and checking on my brother for me." Hicca asked, while treating another warriors' wound.

Astrid nodded "Sure." As she left, she couldn't help but be in awe at Hicca skills. She did tell her she wanted to be a healer, but Astrid never knew Hicca was this good. 'She must have picked up this talent after I ditched her and her brother. I wonder what else is there about her that I don't know about.' She thought glumly.

When she reached the tent she saw the chief with an expressionless face holding his sons' hand while Toothless was at Hiccups' other side, crooning sadly at his rider. The healer notice Astrid there and began ushering her out.

"You need to leave, miss." The healer said kindly.

"Why? What's going on?" Astrid asked now concerned.

"We need to begin the amputation and the less people around here, the better." The healer said with sorrow.

Astrid walked away trying to hold back her tears and walked back to where Hicca was. "Well?" Hicca asked as soon as she saw Astrid.

Astrid tried to say something but couldn't. She didn't need to, however, as a loud and familiar scream caused everyone to jump. Noticing Astrids' expression, Hicca knew what was going on. "They're doing the amputation, aren't they?" she whispered.

Astrid only nodded in reply.

Hicca closed her eyes and took a deep breath. She took a moment to recollect herself before she went back to her patients' wound.

Two hours have passed since the final battle and Hicca was finished treating every wound. She would have enjoyed that moment if she could have shared the experience with her brother. As soon as she was finished she and Midnight went to where her brother lying down and she hasn't left ever since. Looking out in the distance, she noticed that everyone, including her dad, was gathered around, looking like they were having a serious discussion. Curiosity getting the best of her, Hicca got up. She turned to Toothless "Watch after him, bud." She said. The Night Fury nodded in determination. Hicca and Midnight then made their way towards the crowd. "Hey what's going on?" She asked, interrupting their discussion.

Stoick turned to his daughter "We're trying to figure out a way to get back to Berk. With Hiccups' condition, it's best that we get there soon." He informed her. Hicca said nothing and turned to stare at the ocean, to everyones' confusion.

"We need rope." Hicca muttered, making everyone more confused.

"What?" Gobber asked.

"There's a ship out there still standing. It looks good enough to hold a few people. If we get some rope, we can use the dragons to pull the ship with Hiccup, dad, Gobber, Toothless and a few other Vikings back to Berk, explain the situation to everyone who stayed behind and send more ships out to get the remaining Vikings. So we're going to need rope. Six long ropes to be exact." Hicca said. Nobody moved as they stared at the youngest Haddock in shock. They were trying to solve this problem for an hour and she comes up, learns the problem and instantly came up with a solution. She was full of surprises. Hicca started getting annoyed with the lack of response.

"Well?! What are you guys waiting for?! Quit wasting time and go get the rope!" Hicca shouted, snapping them out of it. Intimidated, some of the Vikings ran off to find the ropes while the rest stayed and become more surprised at her. Even Stoick was shock. Who knew she had such a loud, commanding voice? First Hiccup, now Hicca.

'Like father, like daughter.' Gobber thought.


	19. Making Amends

**Disclaimer: I do not own How to train your dragon**

**Chapter 19: Making Amends**

It took a while to get the ship back to Berk, with all the teens, except for Hicca, still trying to get use to flying dragons. But eventually they made it back. When the villagers saw the six dragons, they started panicking. But luckily, Stoick was able to diffuse the panic immediately and explained everything. Gobber and some of the warriors, who came with them, even backed him up. The villagers were a bit hesitant, but seeing as the chief is okay with this, they tried being open-minded about the change in the situation. More ships were sent back to the Nest where the remaining Vikings were as Stoick carried Hiccup back to their home with Hicca, Midnight, Toothless and Gobber right behind him. Stoick and Gobber moved Hiccups' bed downstairs, near the fire. Before Gobber left Hicca stopped him.

"Gobber, do you mind doing two things for me?" She asked.

"Of course, anything." Gobber replied.

"A few months ago, Hiccup made a design for a prosthetic foot to serve as an alternate for a peg leg. Do you think you can make that? I'm sure that's what he would want."

"Okay. And the second?"

"Can you make the prosthetic tailfin and saddle for Toothless? You're going to have to modify the left stirrup, though."

"Give me the designs and I will see what I can do."

"Thanks, there in the drawer of Hiccups' work desk our room of the forge."

Gobber then left and the Night Furies decided to take a nap. Stoick then took this opportunity to speak with his daughter. "So, a healer?" He asked.

Hicca took a deep breath and turned to face her father. This was it. "Yes, I've always been fascinated by it since I was eleven and I really like to help people." She replied.

"Did you ever want to be a dragon-slayer at all?"

Hicca took another deep breath "No, honestly the thought of killing dragons use to bother me a lot. I never understood why until Hiccup and I met Toothless and Midnight."

"Why didn't you ever tell me this?"

"I guess, I just wanted to show everyone and myself that I am capable of being a healer. I mean, as you know, Hiccup and I didn't have the best reputation around here.

Guilt came back to Stoick as he realised that she was right. If a month ago, Hicca came and announced to everyone that she wanted to be a healer and was actually good at it, they would have laughed at her and mocked her and Stoick would have just shook his head, dismissing the idea immediately.

He then came in front of Hicca, kneeled down to reach her height and took her hands in his. "I'm so sorry, Hicca. For everything. I never should have ignored you or Hiccup like that. I never wanted to make you feel like I don't believe in you because the truth is I do. No doubt you're going to be one of the best healers on Berk. And I promise I will never turn my back on either of you. I'm so proud of both of you." He said.

Hearing that, Hicca immediately wrapped her arms around her father "Thanks daddy." She whispered. He returned the hug.

As soon as the rest of the Vikings came back from the Nest, preparations had to be made to accommodate the dragons in the village. As chief, Stoick had to be out there guiding everyone. He was reluctant to leave his children alone in the house, especially when one of them is in a coma, but Hicca, who has taken a vow not to leave the house until her brother wakes up, assured him that with Midnight and Toothless they will be alright. The chief then left, promising to be back in a few hours.

Hicca did a check-up on her brother to make sure that his stump was healing and that he wasn't getting a fever. She then heard the door open. 'That was fast.' She thought. She looked up and saw i actually wasn't her father. It was Astrid.

"Oh, hi Astrid." Hicca said.

"Hey." Astrid replied. She then walked inside. "How's Hiccup?"

"He's alright so far. His stump is healing nicely and no signs of fever. But it doesn't look like he's going to wake up for a while." She informed her.

"Oh." Astrid said. There was a slight pause before she continued. "It was really impressive what you did back there. Treating all the wounds and taking control. You'd be a really good healer and acting chieftess."

"Thanks Astrid." They were both in silence as they realised that this is the first time in a long while that they were left alone talking. The final exam didn't count because they both focused on Hiccup. But now it felt kind of awkward.

Astrid then decided to speak up "Hicca, I'm really sorry."

"Astrid, you already apologised-"

"No, I didn't apologise properly. I'm sorry I ditched you guys to hang out with the other teens, I'm sorry I give you guys glares and never stood up for either of you and I'm sorry I yelled at both of you. I just wanted to be a good warrior to bring honour back to my family."

"What do you mean?"

"Do you remember my uncle Finn?"

"Fearless Finn Hofferson?"

"He lost that title. Do you remember the Frightmare, a terrifying dragon that comes every ten years to Berk?" Hicca nodded. "Well when it came ten years ago, Uncle Finn confronted it and tried to fight it. I don't know what happened to him after that but he didn't move at all. People said he frozen in fear at the sight of the dragon. That has put my familys' name to shame ever since. After that I vowed to restore and when the time train to become warriors, I guess I got too caught with being a good warrior that I forgot about being a good friend and for that I'm sorry."

Hicca was quiet, letting Astrids' words set in. She did remember now what happened during the Arvin Dales Fire. How after that, the rumours spread about what happened to Finn Hofferson. She then spoke up "You know Astrid, after the Nadder incident, I was fully prepared to ignore you for the rest of my life. I didn't think our friendship was ever going to come back. But after what you did for us, helping Hiccup in the Arena and snapping us out of our depressions, I saw the same Astrid I knew and was friends with. I saw another chance. So I'm willing to forgive you and start over if you are."

Astrid smiled and nodded "Deal."

The door opened again and this time it was Raeda. "Hey Hicca. Oh Astrid, you're also here with Hicca in the same room? And both of you are still alive?"

Knowing she was referring to their once feud, Hicca and Astrid chuckled "Yes Rae. We're still alive. And back to being friends. The past is in the past." Hicca said and Astrid nodded in agreement.

"Well good to hear. Anyways, did you guys hear what Snotlout and the Thorston twins did with their dragons? You two should have been there." And just like that the three girls spent hours talking about the days' events.

Astrid then turned to comatose Hiccup. "I hope he wakes up soon."

"Don't worry he will." Hicca said. "I know my brother he's too stubborn to die. When he wakes up you'll be able to tell him exactly how you feel about him."

"What are you talking about?" Astrid asked, though she had a feeling she knew.

"I'm talking about your new found crush for my brother. Don't think I didn't see that kiss."

"Wait, Astrid _kissed_ Hiccup?" Raeda asked her eyes wide.

"She only kissed him on the cheek. But maybe when he wakes up Astrid can give him one on the lips." Hicca teased, causing Astrid to blush.

"Better hurry Astrid. Wouldn't want someone else to get your guy would you?" Raeda said joining in the teasing.

"Oh, shut up!


	20. A New Era

**Disclaimer: I do not own How to train your dragon**

**Chapter 20: A New Era**

Two weeks have passed and Hiccup was still in a coma with no signs of waking up, until today. He was started to stir and Toothless, who noticed, went to nudge him.

**"**Oh, hey, Toothless." Hiccup muttered weakly. Toothless continued to nudge him, trying to get him to get up. The dragon grew impatient waiting for his human to wake up from his deep sleep and he didn't want to wait anymore. "I'm happy to see you too, buddy." Then Toothless pressed his paw on Hiccup stomach, making the latter jerk up immediately. "OW! What-"

Hiccup then took in his surroundings and realised where he was. "I'm in my house." Then he saw Toothless and his mate right in front of him "_You're both_ in my house. Uh... does my dad know you two are in here?! Where's Hicca?" He got the answer to the last question when he turned his head on the side and noticed his sister sleeping on a chair next to him.

The two Night Furies started jumping around excitedly knocking things over, to Hiccups' dismay.

"Okay, okay- no, Toothless! Midnight! Aw, come on..." The two dragons ignored him and got on the rafters above. The noise they were making woke Hicca up.

"Midnight, please. I know you want to go flying but-" As soon as she took a glance at her brother, her eyes shot open. "Hiccup?" She whispered.

"Hey, sis."

Hicca immediately went over to him and wrapped her arms around him, hugging him as tight as she could and he returned it. After she hugged him, she slapped him on left shoulder.

"Ow! What was that?!"

"You idiot! You nearly gave me a heart attack! Don't ever do that again!"

"Okay, I'll try not to." Hiccup replied sarcastically, rubbing his shoulders. He moved to get out of his bed, but stopped when he noticed that something felt different. He removed his blanket and froze in shock by what he saw. Hicca got off his bed and watched his reaction carefully. How was he going to react?

He slowly got out of bed, placing his real foot and prosthetic foot on the ground. He looked at his sister while Toothless, who came down from the rafters with his mate, started sniffing his fake leg.

"The leg was way beyond repair when we saw it. It couldn't be called a leg anymore. We had no choice. The healer had to amputate it. You may feel phantom pain for a while, but don't worry because you won't have to face it alone." Hicca said solemnly, trying to shake away the memory of her brother screaming during the amputation.

Hiccup sighed "I knew it was too easy getting out of there alive. Is this the same prosthetic leg I designed?"

Hicca nodded "I had Gobber make it for you. It took him some time as he discovered it's not easy making a Hiccup and Hicca invention."

Hiccup then took a deep breath "Okay... okay..." He slowly stood up and tried to walk. As soon as he made the first step, he fell. Luckily, Toothless caught him and offered his head for support. "Thanks bud." Hiccup said smiling.

"You don't have to get up if you don't want to. Take more time to rest until you're fully ready to get up." Hicca advised.

"It's okay. I'm ready." Hiccup replied. Taking another deep breath, he walked forward, still leaning on to Toothless' head.

"Spoiler alert: you're going to slam the door." Hicca said.

Before Hiccup could ask his sister why, he opened the door and saw a Monstrous Nightmare right in front of him! Just as his sister had guessed, he immediately slammed the door.

"There it is." Hicca said, amused at her brothers' predictable reaction while Toothless and Midnight warbled in confusion. Why weren't they going outside?

Hiccup turned to his sister, asking for an explanation. Hicca just rolled her eyes and went to open the door.

Instead of another dragon raid, however, Snotlout was riding on the Monstrous Nightmare and was joined by the other teens and their dragons. "Come on, guys, get ready! Hold on tight! Here we go!"

"Surprised, huh?" Hicca asked, watching her brothers' shocked expression. Hiccup could not believe his eyes. Dragons were everywhere in Berk. And what was more shocking was that not a single Viking was seen acting hostile towards their new guests. Is this a dream?

"I knew it. I'm dead." Hiccup deadpanned.

Before Hicca could answer, Stoick, who was nearby and overheard gave a chuckle "No, but you gave it your best shot." He said coming behind his children. "So? What do you think?" He asked as he put one hand on each twins' shoulder.

Hiccup was absolutely speechless as they walked down the steps "I think he likes it dad." Hicca said smilingly. The villagers then notice the two teens walking down the steps.

"Hey, look! It's Hiccup and Hicca!"

"Hiccup, how you doin' mate?"

"It's great to see you two up and about."

"Good to see both of you finally outside your house."

"Turns out all we needed was a little more of... this." Stoick said gesturing to both Hiccup and Hicca.

"You just gestured to _all_ of us." Hiccup stated. His father smiled proudly and nodded.

"Well, most of you, Hiccup." Gobber said walking up to them. "As you can see, I've made one of your handiworks. The design was a bit complex, though. You think it'll do?"

Hiccup stuck out his prosthetic foot and shrugged "I might make a few tweaks." He said, causing everyone to laugh.

"Wouldn't be surprised if you did. Glad to have you back Hiccup. It's boring out here without you and your sister" Raeda said, coming up to them.

"Thanks, Rae." Hiccup and Hicca said, both smiling.

Suddenly, he got a punch on his left shoulder again.

"That's for scaring me." Astrid said.

Hiccup rubbed his left shoulder. Does his left shoulder have a target painted on it or something? "What, is it always going to be this way? Cause..." He didn't get to finish that sentence because Astrid then gave him a kiss on the lips.

"...I could get used to it." Hiccup said after the kiss.

"Lovebirds!" Hicca whispered in a sing-song voice to Raeda, who grinned in response.

"Welcome home." Gobber said, giving Hiccup a new prosthetic tailfin and saddle for Toothless

"Night Fury! Get down!" That caused the teens to turn and see Toothless jumping over a few Vikings to get in front. He was joined by Midnight as the two dragons looked at their riders with pleading looks.

The twins shared a look and laughed. A few seconds later, Hiccup has strapped the saddle and the prosthetic tailfin with a newly modified left stirrup on to Toothless.

"You guys ready?" Hiccup asked Hicca, Raeda and Astrid who all got on their dragons.

"Do you have to ask?" Hicca replied while Astrid and Raeda nodded in agreement. The four of them and their dragons then took off into the skies.

**_This... is Berk. It snows nine months of the year, and hails the other three. Any food that grows here is tough and tasteless. The people that grow here are even more so._**

They flew high up in the air, zigzagging in perfect sync.

**_The only upsides are the pets. _**

The four teens and dragons then flew through the docks, where they were joined by Fishlegs and his Gronckle.

**_While other places have...ponies or parrots, we have... _**

Soon Snotlout and his Monstrous Nightmare and Ruffnut and Tuffnut and their Hideous Zippleback joined the group. A new era has begun.

**_...dragons!_**

**A/N: Finally made it to the end! :) Thank you to all those who took the time to give reviews to this story. It really motivated me to continue with this. I can confidently say that my 'Riders of Berk' fanfic will be coming up soon. See you next time! **


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